Call Me Ginevra
by gNatRat
Summary: The war has the Weasley’s worried about Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall finds the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. What's in store for Ginny at Malfoy Manor? Friendship? Romance? Death? Full Sum inside
1. Prologue

Right, so here's what I've got so far; (all editing done in red) underlined red spaces indicate a deleted letter or punctuation mark

**Title:** Call me Ginevra.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasleys worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regime and daily encounters with Draco. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of a relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fair warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

Ginny Weasley stared out of the small window in the stuffy basement room. Sitting atop some boxes she had commandeered, which balanced nicely on top of a table; she watched as the glass was streaked with the falling rain. Her forehead rested against the cool pane throbbing lightly with the nausea and ache that overwhelmed her. Her stomach was a mess; knotted and twisting inside her with every passing moment causing more grief. Outside, the cobble-stoned streets of Diagon Alley; barely visible through the sheets of rain, were empty of passers-by. No-one would dare walk the streets anymore, not since the Hogwarts incident.

That's what everyone now called the attack on Hogwarts. It would forever go down in history as the first of many attacks to signal Voldemort's return. That night, Ginny's world had crashed in the chaotic rush of battle. Dumbledore's funeral was the last time she had seen either Harry or Hermione, and she only saw Ron three times after that. Harry, along with Ron and Hermione had immediately jumped on the Order bandwagon.

As was expected, Ginny had more than begged to go along, to do what she could to help. Despite her attempts, her parents more than outright refused, they had sequestered her to the Burrow. It wasn't so much that her noble, Gryffindoric nature demanded she be out in the front lines fighting evil, no. It was far deeper than that.

She couldn't bring herself to admit that her brother, her best friend, and someone she had almost loved would all be thrown into life-threatening danger, and there was nothing anyone could do about it. Nothing _she _could do about it. To top it all off, she was now in a basement waiting to be pawned off into another prison.

As previously mentioned, Ron had come home three times before taking his final leave of the Weasley family. Once to tell Ginny about his decision and another to gather up some items he had left behind. The last time he stopped by the Burrow Ginny remembered his sullen cheeks, and beaten body. He had told his parents to get Ginny to a safe house. The worst had yet to come.

She couldn't go back to Hogwarts for her sixth year; it had been shut down and quickly converted to a secondary hospital for the Auror casualties. The professors had been scattered to assorted places according to their expertise. Some joined the ranks of Aurors, some went with the Order, and a few remained behind to tend to the ill or guard the castle from the onslaught of attacks that plagued the once perceived stronghold.

No one had had word of Snape, most didn't care if he could still speak. Very few would stand up for his place in the Order after what he had done; only McGonagall insisted that there must have been some reason behind his actions, why someone who Dumbledore had trusted implicitly could do something so horrific. But everyone knew McGonagall was grieving the loss of Dumbledore, and could only hope to find reason for his death.

Ginny supposed she must also find a reason to survive her current situation. A clap of thunder woke her from her painful reverie. She looked down at her legs for a moment, they were falling asleep in her awkward position; but she didn't care to move. It was the first time in hours that she was able to drown out the fate that was dealt her. Ron's words had hit hard with Molly and Arthur.

They had known that it was only a matter of time until something was to be done with Ginny. She was about to turn sixteen, nowhere near the legal age to use magic and despite the state of things the Ministry would not let up on such restrictions. It seemed that their idea of getting rid of the problem was to continue on as if nothing had happened. With Hogwarts closed, Arthur rarely home; working overtime at the Ministry, and the Weasley's becoming one of the few remaining "blood traitor" families alive, Molly and Arthur saw their home as the most dangerous place for her to be, aside from the streets of Hogsmeade or Diagon Alley.

They had gone to McGonagall, begging her to do something for their only daughter. If only she knew of someone, it didn't even have to be on the same side of the globe; someone who could take Ginny in until she was an adult or until their current situation blew over, anything to get their daughter out of harm's way. McGonagall at first advised them to seek out their own relatives but, alas, most of them were deeply involved in fighting Voldemort's growing armies across Europe.

At last McGonagall agreed to check her small list of resources and get back in touch with them. It had taken nearly two weeks before she owled them a location at which to meet.

Sitting in a small basement beneath the room where they would be meeting, Ginny waited to be introduced to her new guardian. Oddly, outside the window that was taking her mind off the trade were scenes that reminded her why she was here.

Empty streets, broken buildings, city blocks completely obliterated; images reminiscent of England during World War II. Ginny shuddered, what was even more horrifying was that with each day new members rose up to fight alongside Voldemort. Whether for personal conviction or from fear that if they didn't, they would die. Through the wooden ceiling to the basement room Ginny could just make out the sound of raised voices. Her heart dropped. What could possibly make this day even worse?

Heavy footsteps drifted away and suddenly the door to the room flew open, Arthur stomping in. Ginny could barely suppress the shudder that ran through her body in response to the shouting match which was obviously in mid flow.

"Ginny let's-"

"Dumbledore trusted-"

"Blasphemy!"

"Trust me! Trust him!"

"Grab your things!"

"No daughter of mine-"

"-The only place that's safe-"

"-Subjected to that kind of cruelty-"

"-Better off at the house-"

"-Suggest such a thing-"

"She won't survive anywhere else!" McGonagall exclaimed, throwing her hands in the air furiously. "I know you have your reasons to be concerned, trust me I have my own, but there is no other option if you wish to keep her safe."

Her frazzled demeanour shook Ginny. She had never seen her former professor look that way before. Silence had fallen across the room. Still perched on the table Ginny found the continued noise of the rain distracted her. She cast a glance out the window, she couldn't think of anything to say. What was so terrible? It wasn't as though McGonagall had suggested she stay with Voldemort.

Arthur looked McGonagall in the eye, towering over her with his height. "You tell me, you tell me for sure that you trust her. That you know Ginny will be safe."

"Arthur you can't!"

Molly flew to Arthur's side but he put up a hand to silence her, eyes on McGonagall.

"Minerva?"

"I give you my word as a witch, and a member of the Order that no harm will befall Ginny should you choose this woman as Ginny's guardian."

More time passed, Ginny watching the scene intently. Finally she could keep silent no longer.

"What's going on?"

Arthur turned and walked towards his daughter, taking her hands in his as he looked into her eyes.

"Ginny, there's nowhere else for you. You've got to understand that even though your mother and I reacted unenthusiastically to the prospect of this woman as your guardian does not mean that we had any good reason to do so."

Ginny's mind swam, she recalled McGonagall telling them that they had a very good reason to react that way.

A knock resounded on the open door, a gloved hand dropped back into the shadows as a billowing skirt swept across the threshold. Beneath a hat and veil Ginny could not discern any of the lady's facial features; only her voice could be heard enquiring:

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

"Who's that?" Ginny inclined her head towards the cloaked figure.

"Ginny listen to me. This lady has agreed to take good care of you, do you understand?"

Ginny slid off the table, walking past her father without acknowledging him.

"Who is it?" She couldn't very well be offended by an unknown person, it wasn't in her nature.

A gloved hand pushed the veil up past a face and Ginny was frozen in her tracks.

"No!"

"Now Ginny-"

"Are you out of your bleeding mind?"

"Ginny-"

"I thought we were trying to KEEP me from getting killed!"

"Gin-"

"Narcissa Malfoy?!"

A small cough silenced the commotion.

"If I may?" Narcissa stepped forward and approached Ginny.

Ginny, watching her parents out of the corner of her eyes could see her mother's eyes grow wide with astonishment.

"Ginevra isn't it?"

"Yes." Ginny replied quickly, eyebrows squinted together in confusion and disbelief. Narcissa Malfoy? Were they being serious? Why had McGonagall even suggested her?

"Well, Ginevra, first let me say that unfortunately you are not in a position to negotiate. You were in need of a place to keep you safe. My home offers that. Malfoy Manor is unmatched in security and should I need to I could turn it into a stronghold that rivals even Durmstrang. You were in need of someone legally able to protect you as you are currently unable to defend yourself using magic. I can offer you that, and I can offer my experiences dealing with dark magic. I am fully capable of teaching you how to deflect or avoid almost all the dark curses used by Death Eaters. This will make you almost untouchable." Narcissa paused, checking that Ginny was still attending to what she had to say. "You will be unable to attend a school and I have agreed to home school you in all the necessary subjects, feed you, clothe you, ensure you have opportunities for socialisation and by magical contract, I am bound to do whatever is in my power to ensure you remain unharmed. What that means dear girl is that you are about to enter the safest place imaginable."

Silence stretched on after Narcissa completed her speech. Sensing that no one, for the time being, had anything to add she continued.

"Now, if I were trying to kill you as you fear, I could simply do it and be on my way. Instead I'm standing here convincing you to become a guest in my home and be victim to nothing but my good nature. Does that really seem evil? Of course some of my motives are self-serving, it will be nice to have another female in the house and a companion once Draco is gone. Outside of that the only thing you should fear is learning a little from your experience. So, we can sit here and argue all day, or you can gather up your things and we can be on our way before this storm gets any worse."

Ginny considered her situation. If McGonagall really had suggested Narcissa Malfoy, surely there was something good to be found in the woman. It wasn't as though McGonagall had it in for Ginny. The woman had been deeply involved in all of the Order's business, maybe this was just another undercover ploy like the ones Dumbledore had come up with?

Dumbledore… Her mind changed gears when Dumbledore came up. She missed him. He was a great Headmaster and since his death Hogwarts had lost much of its character and the feeling of sanctuary which had been part of it for years. For that reason, aside from all others, no one had the heart to carry on teaching, or learning there. He was one of few people Ginny had depended on in this crazy world of hers. He could be relied upon to expect the unexpected from her. But now he gone, his name struck off her mental list of empathic listeners. What would Dumbledore tell her to do in this situation, she wondered? It didn't take her long to answer.

"Very well, let us leave before we get completely drenched."

She left the building with Narcissa that day, starting her life anew.


	2. Ch1: Day One Opens With a Bang

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** I discovered upon rereading this chapter after uploading the story that I still had a few mistakes in there (cause I've rewritten this chapter about five hundred times) so I've changed some bits and pieces, nothing too big.

_Chapter One: Day One Opens with a Bang_

"Are you hungry?" Narcissa asked.

Ginny looked up at the woman as if she had spoken a different language. They had spent what seemed like hours together in silence, but really it had only been a few minutes since leaving the meeting place. Somewhere between deathly afraid of her impending doom and completely unable to respond in a coherent manner, she blinked. "Well? Speak up Ginevra, if you don't answer the question I'll assume you're not hungry and then you won't be able to eat until dinner tonight at seven, are you hungry or not?"

"Yes, I could eat." Ginny replied in a mousey fashion, almost afraid of the directness of the question. She was lost in how unsure she was of what this relationship would be like. She didn't know if once she walked into Malfoy manor she would be put to work like Cinderella but without the ball and happy ending at the end, or if she would be ignored entirely, which based on all the other alternatives she would prefer.

With Lucius recently broken out of Azkaban and with Draco's advancements in his studies of charms and potions, well, Ginny feared for her safety. However, she was constantly reminded of the vow Narcissa took which in essence bound her life to Ginny's.

"Very well, let's go then, I hope you don't mind French, although it will be part of training to experience foods from different cultures." The woman stepped through an archway that provided entry to the Muggle world, and onto the streets of Muggle London. Ginny found it odd that Narcissa passed so casually between both worlds. But, as Ginny began a close inspection of Narcissa, she wasn't wearing anything that would seem peculiar to Muggles.

Narcissa was merely dressed in a tight fitting jacket and skirt that fell just below her knees. They were lavender which complimented her pale skin and light blonde hair. Ginny had never been this close to Narcissa before and had only seen her on rare occasions like at Ministry get-togethers, but now that she was close enough she was fascinated by the details she noticed.

Like that Narcissa had a way of walking so that her arms swung only a few inches in front of her hips, or that she walked heel to toe, or that she seemed to always look slightly uninterested in her surroundings.

She had little time to notice much else before she was brought to the entrance of a French restaurant called Le Fete. Ginny was led down a small hallway and through two French doors into an empty room. On one side was a massive bay window decorated with light blue and silver drapes and on the other was an equally sized painting of a woman sitting in a field of flowers watching a little girl play under a tree.

Ginny sat down across from Narcissa at a small table next to the window and looked at the menu blankly. Unaware if she would be punished for speaking, Ginny braved the unknown. "Mrs. Malfoy?"

"Call me Narcissa." Narcissa said, the tone of her voice amazingly softer and almost, but Ginny wouldn't assume it at the moment, warmer. "Mrs. Malfoy is Lucius' mother. I much prefer the sound of my own name." Narcissa put down the menu that she had been studying and removed the small half-lens glasses she had put on without Ginny's knowledge and looked at the fifteen year old directly.

"Do you prefer to be called anything other than Ginevra?" The interest she showed seemed genuine and Ginny was beginning to feel more and more confused.

"Um, Ginny." Ginny had been surprised at Narcissa's words. It was as if she didn't like Lucius' mother.

"Ginny, a very pretty name." Narcissa began to put her glasses back into their satin holding bag. "Of course we shall reserve that for a less public setting, as members of society we should maintain a formality in the public eye, you understand of course."

Ginny nodded. "Mrs., Narcissa I mean, why…" Ginny trailed off. Why had Narcissa taken her in? If it was to use her as bait against the Weasley's and therein Harry and therein the Order and all of good wizarding England, she wasn't sure if she wanted to know. The waitress came by with a cup of tea for Narcissa, apparently a usual, and a glass of water for Ginny. After the waitress took Ginny's drink order and left the room was cast into silence.

"Speak up Ginevra." Narcissa instructed.

Clearing her throat, Ginny's hands making fists in the tablecloth in her lap, she finished her sentence. "Why did you take me in? I mean, for real?"

Narcissa raised a thin eyebrow and Ginny feared for her life. "Ginevra, exactly what do you mean by the phrase 'for real'?"

"Just that, I don't understand it you see. It makes no sense. What's the truth behind it?" Immediately Ginny cursed her horrid inability to shut her mouth when her brain wouldn't stop shouting at her.

Narcissa sipped at her tea. Setting down the cup, gingerly as to ensure none of the liquid would go sloshing about, she looked Ginny in the eyes and Ginny could feel her stomach doing flip-flops. "First, Ginny, I want to tell you that you are the daughter of a Weasley. By bringing you into my home I am putting myself and family at a great risk-"

"Exactly, so why do it?" Ginny blurted out, eyebrows squished together.

Narcissa sneered. "My dear girl, you must really stop making that face, it's atrocious." Ginny paled and sunk into her chair. "Keep your posture." Narcissa snapped and Ginny sat up. "Now, let me be very clear, while you are under my house you will obey by my rules and conduct yourself in a manner that I see fit. Interrupting an adult while they are speaking, making unappealing faces and then ruining your posture are three things that I do not tolerate."

Narcissa paused and looked Ginny over a bit. "We will address your poor grammar later. But you asked a question and I will answer it. I must first assure you that because I brought you into my home, I must in some way not be evil as I have already attempted to assure you. Now unless you suffer from sort of attention span deficiency or have such poor grammar that you can't understand what I'm saying, there is no need for me to repeat myself, am I clear?"

Ginny nodded numbly. She had never felt so vulnerable. At that very moment she could feel her mind quickly going through all the things that Narcissa could criticize next. Draco was prejudice because of her family finances; Lucius was prejudice because of her father; Narcissa was prejudice because of her manners. Ginny had truly discovered that the Malfoys really were as prejudice as people thought they were.

"Good," Narcissa took a breath. "I brought you into my home for reasons that you will later find out but are not proper dinner conversation. As I mentioned before I have some selfish desires, one is to have another lady in my home, someone I can mold and look after. Draco is not exactly the most endearing of people, though he can be when he tries."

Ginny had to bite back the urge to snort in disagreement. Draco? Endearing? Maybe the rumors about Narcissa being a drug addict were true after all.

"Also, with the level of expectations for young pureblooded ladies quickly declining, as you will notice throughout your societal meetings with them, I found it necessary to begin to spread the traditional values to the younger generation. Do you have any further questions or may we continue with our meal?" By the time Narcissa ended her sentence the waitress walked in to take their order. There was obviously no more questioning to be done at that time, and Ginny was honestly fine with the answer that she had been given.

Narcissa ordered first and then helped Ginny out with the menu. Ginny minute by minute felt oddly comfortable with this woman whom she had been taught to hate and even fear. Narcissa was in no way how Ginny had imagined. Where Ginny had thought her battered and afraid, Narcissa was strong and opinionated. Where Ginny had thought her corrupt and cruel, Narcissa was warm and maternal. Where Ginny had thought her mute and ignorant, Narcissa was articulate and cultured.

Narcissa in fact resembled the women that Ginny had always dreamed of being taken in by, adopted per se.

"I'm sorry." Ginny said, breaking the silence between conversations. She was barely audible over the rain drops pelting the windowpanes.

Narcissa looked at her with softness in her eyes. Ginny's eyes were focused at the dead center of the table. "For reacting the way I did when I found out you were taking me in. I should've really been more grateful. I mean, it's not like you're not putting yourself in a difficult spot anyways."

Narcissa dabbed her mouth with her napkin and listened. "I mean, I guess…" Ginny couldn't find a way to keep speaking without the fear of sounding remedial or rude. "It's just being who I am; from where I'm from, knowing who I do and all… hearing that I'm being taken care of by a Malfoy isn't exactly like getting a Christmas present."

Ginny looked up to find Narcissa's lips forming a small smile. Just from her experience with Draco she wasn't aware that any of the Malfoy's had the muscles in their face to smile. "You're really not anything like what I thought you would be like."

Narcissa sipped at her drink, and then set it down. "Ginny, I am not who I married. I do appreciate your apology and accept it. It takes a great deal of courage to apologize because it means one of two things. Either you've recognized your mistake or you're conceding to end a conflict. Both take courage. I must also say Ginny, that you should know by know that there is always more than what meets the eye." Narcissa watched as Ginny nodded thoughtfully.

"You must also understand that despite what you may think, everyone holds prejudices. Why, even you dear Ginny, and your wonderful family hold prejudices. For example when you saw me. You relied on second-hand if not completely false information about me or things you knew about my husband and son to make judgments about my character. You have to admit that you let my name, my finances, and my family, cause you to carry prejudices about me."

Ginny could only admit defeat on that. It was strange to hear it, but it was so true as well. How many times had she met a Hufflepuff that she couldn't believe was in that house just because they were smart? Were Hufflepuffs stupid then? And how many times had she prejudged a Ravenclaw for being anti-social because they were proclaimed bookworms?

And although most of her Slytherin prejudgments were proven true, she knew for a fact just from hearing from her father that some of those kids led hard lives. It wasn't like their behavior was all unexplainable.

She was interrupted as the food was brought in. She had apparently ordered some sort of veal dish and Narcissa had gotten something that looked like it wasn't done dying. Ginny didn't dare look at it to long for fear she might see two eyes pop out of the pasta and blink at her. Feeling sick at the thought, she sipped at her water until her stomach was calm and began to pick at her veal.

"I'm not like them you know." Ginny hadn't even realized she had spoken until she saw Narcissa looking at her with a question on her face. Ginny's cheeks went red. Her mouth should be arrested. "My family I mean. I'm not like them. I mean, I'm like mum and dad because we all three have red hair and freckles and small feet. And I'm a lot like Bill and Charlie cause I like adventure.

"I'm like Percy cause I'm smart, but I'm smarter than him really. I've actually been told that I'm smarter than Hermione. I never told her that though, cause she would've stopped talking to me. And I'm like Fred and George cause I'm really good at flying and casting spells and joking around. They say I'm mischievous like them, but I don't think I quite compare except I can play a mean prank."

Ginny giggled to herself. "I don't quite know how I'm like Ron. But he cares a lot for me and although he butts into my business too much I care a lot for him too. But really I'm not like them."

She had spent her years conflicted between two parts. One part was what was expected of her by her family and friends. She was expected to be drop dead in love with Harry Potter, to be a daddy's girl, to be admiring of the twins, and to be passionately steadfast in all of the Weasley values. But truth be told, she wasn't really any of those things.

Yes, she cared for Harry, but she was young and didn't need to be bothered with that fanciful thought. She was more absorbed in her studies and what Lord Voldemort was doing next rather than following Potter around after her second year. Yes he had saved her life, and yes they had recently broken up, but she wasn't torn apart. In fact if he hadn't ended it she would have. She just didn't want to so close to Dumbledore's death.

Ginny paused. Where was she going with this exactly? She had just run through her entire immediate family describing comparisons in behavior to Narcissa Malfoy, probably someone who didn't care, so exactly what was her point in all of it anyways?

"What I mean is that I don't want to be protected, I don't want to be coddled, I don't want to be expected to obey every rule every minute of every day and I don't like that they think that I'm perfect or that I have to be. I've got Slytherin friends but I can't tell them that. I've got friends in all the houses. And," She trailed off.

"What is it dear?" Ginny looked up at Narcissa. She was genuinely surprised. Narcissa had actually been listening this whole time!

Ginny fiddled with her fork. "Well, Snape had actually been my favorite professor in school. You see, I was really good at potions and herbology and he would give me extra assignments cause I would always finish my work early and all. He was more of my head of house than Professor McGonagall was. And actually, he was the one that helped me through what happened in the Chamber of Secrets. I really liked him. Until…"

Her eyes burned with the memory of hearing Harry describe what had happened that night above the rooftops. Breaking free from her reverie, she looked up to find Narcissa with a strange look on her famous. Almost a knowing look. Ginny for a moment wondered if she had given away anything about Snape, given away that he wasn't a Death Eater. Or at least, she thought he wasn't.

"So I bet you're wondering what will be going on while you're with me?" Narcissa changed the subject. Ginny, surprised that Narcissa seemed to be respectful of such a touchy subject, sat their numbly for a moment before nodding. "Many say I run a strict regime, and I do, I will expect you to abide by the rules I set out for you as nothing less would be expected by those in society from a girl living in a Malfoy home. Clear?"

Ginny nodded.

"Good. You will attend breakfast, lunch and dinner everyday. Breakfast is served at eight-thirty, lunch at one, and dinner at seven. We eat in the family dining room on the second floor. I will have house elves wake you up every morning at six thirty and you will have ample time to make yourself presentable. After breakfast, at nine thirty, you and I will begin classes until twelve thirty when you can go and freshen up for lunch. After lunch at two thirty we will continue classes until five o'clock when you will have free time before and after dinner until ten thirty when you will be required to be back in your own room."

"Your room has a bathroom connected to it and its own balcony with space to garden so there will be no need to be out after ten thirty. The subjects you will study are very traditional so don't be surprised. Politics, art, music, history, language, literature and poetry, and of course, charms and potions. I find that there is no use for anything else after Hogwarts."

The waitress brought out courtesy fruit cups filled with an assortment of berries and orange slices.

"Not even Defense Against the Dark Arts?" Ginny asked, stirring her steaming soup.

"My dear, all those subjects will provide you with that. Art, music, literature and poetry will allow you to be creative with the use of charms and potions, politics and history will allow you to be knowledgeable of what it is you will have to accomplish with those charms and potions."

After Narcissa finished her sentence, the waitress came in and took away the empty plates. Two small bowls of steaming soup were set down in front of them. After the waitress left the room, and once she was sure no one was there, Narcissa took out her wand and with a wave the steam disappeared from her soup. Taking a sip after retiring her wand, she sighed. "Wonderful."

"And I'll be studying all of that everyday?" Ginny looked down at her soup. Narcissa smiled and taking her wand out once more, cast the incantation on Ginny's soup and in seconds it was mild enough to eat.

Narcissa continued. "Language, literature art, music, and poetry will be every day before breakfast, politics, history, charms and potions will be after lunch. Of course some of these will be able to be connected to things going on today and to each other. I will show you direct examples of how they can be used in modern society as well. Most of the time we will study either in my bedroom, my study, or sometimes outside if I'm up for it, although the summer heat or torrential downpours will call for indoor studying. At times I will find the need to travel into town to put you to the test."

With Ginny's look of utter distress, Narcissa smiled. "Trust me dear, I have all the confidence that you'll struggle very little with my regiment. Naturally it will be a bite to chew to begin with but you will become used to it and then it'll become second nature."

"You have a lot of faith in me for someone who's just met me."

Narcissa laughed and Ginny was reminded of the chimes her mother hung over the sink. "Knowing the kind of spirit your family has, I should, you show amazing promise and perseverance. Why should I doubt you?"

They continued to finish up their soup and the conversation was paused until it could be picked up later.

---------------------------------

After the lunch was paid for by some unspoken tab which, Ginny thought, must be enormous with the way Narcissa seemed to disregard money (and odd as Ginny wondered where Narcissa got Muggle money to pay for it all), the two set out to have Ginny sized for robes. After re-entering wizarding England, Narcissa took Ginny to Hogsmeade, one of the last untouched places of the war.

Narcissa led Ginny past the usual dress shop that Ginny had seen Draco wander into. Ginny looked into its windows and watched her reflection disappear off onto the brick wall, then turned back to Narcissa in bewilderment. "Aren't we getting robes?" She asked.

"Yes." Narcissa replied, looked both ways across a small street before directing Ginny in the opposite direction of town.

"But we just passed the robe store." Ginny was pointing in the direction of the robe store.

Narcissa let out a light laugh that sounded like the last and that didn't make Ginny feel like she was stupid for being unaware of what was going on. "Ginny, every other child, even Draco, may very well shop there but I will not have a charge of mine wearing those robes."

"But I thought they were the best in all of England?"

"Not quite." Narcissa barely finished her sentence before she was pulling Ginny into a white building, windows covered with silver drapes.

Within the passing of five minutes, Ginny had been sized and was looking about at the marvelous creations of some woman named Bellina as Narcissa had a conversation with the fitter.

"She will need a robe for day to day wear, for outerwear, active wear, dinners, formal events, and dances. We'll come in monthly to update any size changes that may occur. Since its August already, we have our annual Halloween ball and she'll need an outfit for that. I suppose the same as usual? Two weeks before? Right, we'll need a dress for the Ministry's grand ball as the Minister has decided not to postpone until better times, three weeks before, we'll come in. We'll take care of New Year's afterwards." Narcissa made a few scratches in her black book and Ginny just let it wash over her, waiting to digest the things she would have coming to her until after she digested her veal.

The woman with the pins nodded, gave Narcissa a slip of paper, and Ginny and Narcissa were off again.

"Where are we going now?" Ginny asked, walking alongside Narcissa. As they walked along, Ginny became aware of how different and out-of-place she looked next to the affluent woman. Ginny was dressed in tan slacks and a shirt and looked more like the help next to Narcissa than her new charge. Narcissa's outfit was elegant and she looked like she belonged somewhere dripping with money. Before Ginny could delve further into her thoughts, Narcissa replied.

"Gringotts, we've got to open you up your own account, then to the Ministry, I need to pick a few things up, you can practice mingling and then we're off to Malfoy Manor for your grand tour of my lovely home, I'll show you your room, you can get well acquainted with the house elves, wash up and be ready for dinner."

Narcissa's mind amazed Ginny. This woman seemed to make lists in her sleep. Everything was so organized and thought-out. It was so strange how much Ginny seemed to like her when she had been under the impression that any conversation with the woman would be quite the opposite of pleasant.

"Wait, Gringotts? My own account? I don't even have two Knuts to rub together to make an account." Ginny became embarrassed by her proclamation of poverty.

"My dear, every single one of my girls receives an allowance and as I have stated before you are no different. You will get twenty-five galleons a week to entertain yourself, but that will cover all frivolous expenses, plus any expense I do not specifically supply, in other words, everything but necessary items of clothing, educational items and meals that we provide." There was a pause. "Close your mouth Ginny, you'll catch flies."

Ginny's jaw was scratching the concrete as they walked. Twenty-five galleons?? Her father only earned thirty-five hundred a year from the ministry! Closing her lips and swallowing, gulping rather, she was frozen mute as they walked up to the famous Gringotts building.

The marbled walls were imposing and magnificent before the littlest Weasley. The bronze doors before her were opened by two goblins, each dressed in scarlet uniforms. They were allowed to pass and arrived at a set of silver doors with a rhyme Ginny had read only once before:

"_Enter, stranger, but take heed_

_Of what awaits the sin of greed_

_For those who take, but do not earn,_

_Must pay most dearly in their turn._

_So if you seek beneath our floors_

_A treasure that was never yours,_

_Thief, you have been warned, beware_

_Of finding more than treasure there."_

Marveling, Ginny and Narcissa were granted access by two more goblins into the main hall which, literally, took Ginny's breath away. The grandiose chandeliers made of thousands of crystals threw light around the room which was filled with the sounds of coins clinking and shuffling of little feet. Ginny and Narcissa approached the mahogany counter and a goblin looked up from his work, his long eyebrows brushing the rims of his spectacles. "What business have ye?"

Narcissa, not at all intimidated by the brashness of the goblin smiled coolly. "I need to open a new account."

"Name?"

"Narcissa Malfoy."

The goblin hesitated as he flipped to a page in his ledger, using a quill to write in the name. "Will the account be under yer name?"

"No, it will be under Ginevra Weasley." The goblin wrote this in.

"Do ye have the opening fee?" The goblin peered over his desk at Ginny. Ginny of course was too scared to react and stared right back at the wrinkled creature.

"I do." Narcissa pulled from one of her robe pockets a bag of coins, which by the audible sound they made clunking against the wood as Narcissa set them down, sounded like multiple galleons. The goblin opened the sack, looked in, weighed it, and then deposited it into a drawer at his desk. He nodded to Narcissa who then, started for the door. Ginny blinked and followed close behind.

Once they were out of the building Ginny turned to Narcissa. "That's all we had to do? I thought there was going to be more… papers and stuff."

Narcissa shook her head. "They know me there and know the routine by now."

The rest of the walk was in silence as the two headed down the street, out of Diagon Alley and towards a small floo centre. Stepping inside, they paid for a handful of floo each. Stepping up to their designated fireplace, they settled themselves inside it, threw their floo, and were off to the Ministry of Magic.

-------------

Narcissa had already stepped out and was in the process of dusting her skirt before Ginny was even aware they had landed (she had built up a habit of closing her eyes during flooing). Ginny stepped out of a gilded fireplace against a long wall into the atrium of the Ministry of Magic. The floor was polished dark wood, the ceiling (as Ginny had heard) a peacock blue. The golden symbols which danced across it dazzled Ginny. As she followed Narcissa the sound of the Fountain of Magical Brethren fell quieter behind them.

Ginny looked back and took in the sight. She remembered when it had been blasted to rubble and was surprised to see it incomplete. The actual fountain part was replaced but none of the statues had been. She vividly remembered that night. The thestral ride, the mirror, her poor busted ankle (from which she still had an inability to turn it a certain way). It made her think of Harry.

A frown broke out across her face. She hadn't really spoken to him since Dumbledore's funeral. He had insisted that he was going in search of the Horcruxes, but understood his handicap at being an underage wizard with no knowledge of them. Ginny quickly snapped out of her trance.

Before they could meet Narcissa's friend they first registered their wands with some man in dire need of a shave. They walked past him and got into a lift which took them to level four. As they stepped out they were met by a man with brown robes on.

"Welcome Mrs. Malfoy, good to see you again." Narcissa and the man shook hands and she smiled warmly.

"And you," She replied, turning she set a slender hand on Ginny's shoulder. "This is Ginevra Weasley; she will be staying with me for a while." Ginny stepped up and shook the man's hand. His face was soft around the edges and wrinkled slightly. He was in his fifties and she assumed it was the stress from the war that made his eyes turn downwards at the outside. His hair was a dark blonde and brushed about as if he had been running his hands through them. A small cowlick protruded from the back of his head where a few strands of hair almost curled and stood out from the rest of the straight hairs. His brown eyes widened as he shook her hand and he blinked a few times, looking from Narcissa back to Ginny.

"Hello, how're you doing?" She smiled awkwardly and stepped back, attempting to become less obviously self-conscious.

"Fine thank you, Ginevra." He cleared his throat. "My, what a beautiful name, and I must say Narcissa; she's much more sociable than dead Draco." Ginny was immediately embarrassed. Despite Ginny's personal feelings, his approval seemed to mean some sort of importance because Narcissa smiled even wider and nodded. After a few more words, Narcissa and Ginny followed the man, who Ginny learned was named David, down the corridor lined with people flipping through folders and running in and out of offices.

The walls were covered with pictures of the Death Eaters. Individual shots from Azkaban, shots from some of the outbreaks, family pictures, ID pictures, they were all over the place, haunting the Ministry halls. David explained that the Ministry was such a mess due to the war and that he apologized profusely for the clutter.

Ginny followed David and Narcissa into a small room with a desk and chairs. David shut the door behind them and held out his hand for them to sit as he took a seat on the opposite side of the desk. "I got the paperwork you requested on the Golden Snidgets and your puffapods are in a box in the basement. I'll mail them to you so you don't have to worry about carrying them."

"I'd appreci-" Ginny's head snapped to the wall beside her as it rumbled. Her stomach leapt in between her lungs. It sounded like thunder. There were voices in the hallway, raised voices, and she saw David grip the arms of his chair tightly. Narcissa reached out for Ginny's arm and pulled her back behind her so Ginny stood on the other side of Narcissa from the door.

David stood and walked over beside Narcissa. The room shook and she knew that what she heard wasn't thunder. The lights went out and before she could scream, she felt a hand on her wrist and was pulled into the hallway where she was bombarded by dark black smoke and horrified screams.

"What's going on?!" She cried, frightened, pawing for the floor as she dropped to her knees. Pressing into her palms as she crawled behind Narcissa she felt bits of plaster which she assumed were from the walls and ceilings. Around her she heard hurried footsteps and general calamity.

"It must be an attack! Stay close and follow my voice, we've got to get to the fireplace!" Narcissa yelled back. The two crawled onwards, Ginny's eyes watering from the smoke and her chest convulsing with painful coughs. Debris continued to fall around them as they went on. Ginny paused every once and while, hand covering her mouth as she coughed. "Ginny! Don't breathe in so much! You'll pass out!" Ginny's lungs burned and she began to feel lightheaded, the screaming making her head throb. Her knees were beginning to sting from rubbing against the carpet.

As she moved, apparently in front of a door, someone tripped over her. As the person scrambled to stand, Ginny felt a heel dig into her knuckles. "OW!" She cried, kicking whoever it was away from her.

"WHO JUST KICKED ME?!" Barked an angry voice, Ginny froze. Something in her, an instinct, told her that the person she had kicked was not a friend. She could see a red light glowing through the smoke but before she could cry out in fear, Narcissa grabbed her arm and was pulling her in through a door and down a stairwell. As they ran, Ginny could hear the man behind them. "DON'T RUN!" He taunted, a maniacal laughter following his words.

Ginny felt her body go cold with fear. This man was a Death Eater. As if the night here in the Ministry or the attack on Hogwarts wasn't enough; Ginny was hoping she would never have another run in with a Death Eater. As Ginny and Narcissa frantically rushed into the atrium from a door by the lift, the smoke dispersing up into the vaulted ceilings, it seemed freedom was at hand.

They rushed into the nearest departure fireplace and as Narcissa reached for some floo Ginny turned and saw a read beam of light the size of a full grown kneazle heading for her and flashes from that night they were in the Department of Mysteries swarmed her mind. She was unconscious before they reached Malfoy Manor.


	3. Ch2: Composure, an Acquired Skill

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

_Chapter Two: Composure, an Acquired Skill _

Narcissa pulled Ginny's body out of the fireplace dragging floo powder and ash all over the floor. The woman summoned a blanket and maneuvered it beneath Ginny's head. Inspecting the wound on Ginny's forehead, she whispered a short incantation to stop the bleeding. The redheaded charge had been a victim of good luck.

The Death Eater who Narcissa recognized as Armando Mottles, a portly Irish man who helped Lucius in some of his more, dirtier non-Death-Eater acts, had been the one to shoot them with some sort of stunning charm. Narcissa, who had seen it coming, attempted to throw herself in front of Ginny, but was rocked out of the way by the shaking of the building. Ginny was hit with the blast and propelled into the back of the fireplace where she incurred a nasty bump on her head.

From behind her she heard the house elves scatter in, their small feet making patting noises on the wood floor. "Miss Narcissa, Miss Narcissa! What happened? Are you alright?" They cooed as they gathered around. Over the years she had become a favorite of the house elves, more gentle towards them than either Lucius or Draco.

"She needs some medical attention but she should be fine. I'll be alright as soon as she is." Narcissa replied; hand on her head as she felt the onslaught of the magical oath take over. The stunning charm on Ginny was making Narcissa very woozy and in seconds she too was passed out on the floor of the Malfoy drawing room.

-----------

Ginny awoke to a strong beam of sunlight filtered by shear curtains showering her face. Squinting, her temples throbbing, she held up a hand to block out the pest. Groaning, she used her elbow to elevate her upper half and looked about. She was in a large bedroom, covered on one wall with magical wallpaper that displayed falling golden leaves on a white backdrop. Against the wall was a desk already covered with assorted papers.

Next to the desk was a door, closed, but she assumed it led to a bathroom. Between the desk and the foot of her bed was a large Persian rug depicting springtime somewhere, and at the foot of her bed was a large leather trunk which she recognized as her own.

It seemed to fit in, matching well with the dark walnut floors and cream walls. To her left her wand and small personal items set on a small pedestal table that separated her bed from a large chair, dark red and plush. Windows, floor to ceiling, lined the wall from the chair to the bathroom door. To her right she saw her reflection in an antique dresser mirror. Her head was wrapped tightly with cloth. Reaching a hand up, her skin tingled and stung as she touched it lightly. Flinching, she pulled away and swung the covers off of her legs.

Scraped up and bruised, her legs were clad in nothing but some shorts she had packed earlier that morning and she was wearing a shirt her mum had made for her, designed with a large gold 'GW' on a red background. It was one of Ginny's favorite shirts. As she ran her fingers over the embroidery, she was overwhelmed with missing her mum.

She wondered if a report on the attack on the Ministry had gotten back to them, whether or not they knew that she had been there when it happened, that she had been hurt. Oh, how she wished her father would rush in at any minute and take her up into his arms, tell her everything would be okay, ask her how she was doing, just like he normally did. But she knew that wouldn't be the case. She knew he wouldn't come rushing through that dark door and into this room to check up on his baby girl.

She was alone now, alone in enemy territory.

A light knock came from said door and for a second her heart skipped a beat in hope that maybe she was wrong, but as the door opened she that one the other side was Narcissa Malfoy, not Arthur Weasley.

"I see you're awake. How are you feeling?" Narcissa closed the door behind her and crossed the room, heels clicking against the wood, sitting at the foot of Ginny's bed. Ginny noticed that Narcissa had changed from earlier; it felt so long ago since they had been at Le Fete.

The woman was now wearing some sort of pant suit. It was mint and made out of silk. The top was very eastern in design, crossing asymmetrically across Narcissa's chest. The bottoms were cargo style and stopped in the middle of Narcissa's shins which Ginny noticed were bruised as well.

"What happened to you?" She reached forward, touching the skin lightly. Beneath her fingertips she felt warm smooth flesh, something she was surprised to feel. She had expected Narcissa to be cold.

"No matter dear, how are _you_ feeling?" Narcissa laid her hands over the bruises, covering them up and forcing Ginny into the original question.

"I'm fine, but my head is throbbing and I feel like I'm about to be sick." Ginny's stomach was reeling and just sitting up was making her nauseous.

"It's the effects of the medicine." Narcissa sighed. "You were hit with a mild stunning charm which renders you temporarily unconscious. You were given some medicine to speed up the process because it can last, depending on the witch or wizard it is cast on, anywhere from half a day to a week. Lucky for you your body is strong enough that you woke up in time for dinner."

"Dinner? How long was I out?" Ginny rubbed the back of her neck as it strained in agony.

"About a day." Narcissa saw the shirt in Ginny's hands and looked at it, a small smile crossing her thin lips. "This shirt, did your mother make it for you?"

Ginny held the shirt protectively to her chest. She nodded.

Narcissa's smile slipped away as she realized how Ginny must have heard her words. She turned to the windows. "I never was able to make things for Draco, he grew at such odd rates, you know. One day he was small and the next day he was six, and then thirteen." Narcissa laughed lightly to herself, an awkward sound to have left her mouth. She could barely recall some of Draco's younger years with him being away at boarding schools which Lucius had insisted upon, training for a young boy to develop into a young man.

Ginny blushed pink, feeling she was in someway interrupting a very private moment of Narcissa's. It was even more embarrassing to think that at some point in time Draco had been a child. Ginny would therefore have to acknowledge he was human and could have feelings and that was a leap she wasn't prepared for.

After a pause, Narcissa patted the cushion and stood up, announcing a change in subject. She stood and straightened any possible wrinkles from her clothes and smiled at Ginny cordially, a very businesslike demeanor washing over the woman. "You've missed lunch in recovery but dinner will commence at seven tonight. I'll give you thirty minutes to take a bath or shower, whichever, the bathroom is right through that door."

Narcissa motioned to the door beside the desk across from Ginny's bed. "I'll send in a house elf to help you with your attire and introduce you to the staff. Afterwards I can show you the manor and grounds which should put us right at dinnertime. We can begin your lessons tomorrow morning."

Narcissa turned and left and with the click of the bedroom door, Ginny found herself surprised at the pool of excitement boiling up inside of her. She had never been pampered before, and although the prospect of sitting at the same dinner table as Lucius and Draco didn't sound much like pampering, everything else sounded great.

If it was anything like being doted on in the swanky French restaurant or the experience of having upscale, trendy robes tailored to her body, she might just like it here. She moaned as her head throbbed again, going from ear to ear and she let herself lay back into her blankets and pillow. She would enjoy the day if her body would let her.

It took some time but the tenacious redhead finally coaxed her body to stand. She shuffled her feet across the floor, the wood warm against her feet from the beaming of the afternoon sunlight through the windows. She turned the old-fashioned knob on the bathroom door and entered a room completely covered in stone.

The floor was a sand colored marble tile with cream veins and the countertop a dark brown with amber. The sink was to the right of the door, submerged in the dark marble, flanked on each side by sconces and crowned above it with an ornately framed oval mirror. Ginny could barely breathe as she marveled in the detail of the frame. It spiraled and curled and if she looked close enough, it glowed slightly.

Behind her, across from the grandiose vanity area was a porcelain claw foot tub sitting beneath a large bay window. To the right of the tub was an oversized tiled shower with the water falling from the ceiling like rain. She realized, finally, that her jaw was wide open. Shutting her mouth, she disrobed and climbed into the shower, hesitant to get into the bath should she never get out.

-------------

She was in heaven. A deep crimson robe had been left for her on a chair beside the vanity. Inside it she felt as if she was wrapped sunlight. She could smell the honey from her body wash and the rose from her shampoo. She sighed happily as she opened the door into her bedroom, steam following her out; at the foot of her bed stood a smiling house elf by the name of Babsy with straw-like hair and big green eyes. Her sharp nose whistled a bit as she spoke to Ginny on what to wear and when.

Ginny had been surprised to find her chest filled with clothes the right size. She could only figure that Narcissa had gotten sizes from during the robe fitting and had someone get Ginny clothes while she was unconscious.

Closing the door behind her, Ginny stepped out into the hall wearing a dress which was belted at her waist and puffed out slightly above that, the hem falling right above her knees. Two inch-wide straps held up the fabric and connected in the back where a basket-weave pattern of strips of satin had been laced between her shoulder blades and to her lower back. The color was a cool mint green that made her blush stand out against the creamy, freckled skin. Her long curls had been straightened and pulled into a ponytail that stopped at the bottom of her back. From her ears hung simple teardrop earrings of emerald.

She was glowing as Babsy introduced her to the staff that had lined itself up in the hallway. Aside from the number of odd house elf names Ginny would have to place in her repertoire, she met the head grounds keeper Landon, a man of about forty who was at the time dressed in grounds-tending clothes, and Ernest the "chief of staff" of sorts. Ernest took her from there and walked her down a curving staircase to the lower level where they found Narcissa in a drawing room reading something in the paper.

Ginny stepped down a few steps into the room, a plush Persian rug beneath her feet. "Just a moment, dear, take a seat." Narcissa's eyes flicked up momentarily and she nodded to a chair, and then returned back to her paper.

Ginny slowly made her way over and lowered herself onto the cushion. To her right was an immense fireplace surrounded by white molding painted with gold decoration of ivy and leaves. On either side of the fireplace were volumes. She was surprised to see how many books the Malfoy house had in it. She didn't think they read all that much.

The room was filled with luxurious furnishings, ranging from eighteenth century French to nineteenth century English. The eclectic blend of time periods and cultures made the room so antique and warm that Ginny felt almost, dare she say, at home.

Narcissa set the paper down and Ginny could see a picture on the front page of the Ministry. "It seems the attack is popular talk of the town." Narcissa explained.

"But there have been plenty of attacks, why was that so special? I mean, besides the fact that it was at the Ministry?" Narcissa crossed the room and sat adjacent to Ginny in a wingback upholstered with silver and blue patterned fabric that shined in the light.

"Because they stole something from the Department of Mysteries, there were fatalities, of course. And the fact that we were there was mentioned." Narcissa explained simply. She looked Ginny over a smiled slightly. "You look very nice in that color. I'm glad the clothes fit, I had an order placed for clothes when we were getting your robes done." Ginny received the affirmation of her assumption. "Now, are you ready for the tour?"

Ginny nodded and stood. Her height was elevated about two inches with the addition of what she recognized as fashionably "in" wedges. She didn't understand the cork part but the rich turquoise of the strap across her foot and around her ankle was lovely. Now, standing at about five foot nine inches, she was almost as tall as Narcissa, who was a tall thin woman. Narcissa smiled in approval and Ginny followed her out into the landing beneath the staircase she had previously descended.

"That staircase takes you back up to your room. That is the guest wing. Standing outside, looking at the front of the house, it is on the right with our gardens. On the left is the family wing. In the middle, joining the two wings, are the family dining and living room. All of which is on the third floor. We are on the second floor right now where Lucius and I have our offices."

From the landing and leading further down, was another short flight of stairs. At the bottom of this was an immense foyer and the front door which allowed Ginny to be able to picture where she was. As they stepped off the last step, they were turned in front of the main entrance, another winding staircase to the right of where they were.

Narcissa turned, the fabric of her pants shimmering beneath the light flooding in from the windows. Ginny loved the windows. They were on either side of the front door (which was a dark walnut and held an ornate design of glass within its wooden panels) and spanned nearly floor to ceiling, the width of the car her father had magicked (and Ron and Harry had stolen to get to school their second year).

Between the family wing staircase and one of those massive windows was a large archway leading into what looked to be a living room. Ginny and Narcissa stepped inside. To their immediate left was a bay window with a bench built into it, covered with cushions and blankets. On the opposite wall of the entrance, centered between the window and the entrance to another room was a massive fireplace, this one seemed to be carved out of stone. There were long silver and green striped sofas around the room and a large coffee table in the middle.

"When Lucius and I have company over we usually mingle in this room, I'll be holding parties for you to associate yourself with others and it will teach you social skills." Narcissa dictated.

"What kind of others?" Ginny asked, a hint of uncertainty in her voice.

Narcissa's blue eyes shot towards Ginny's direction. "The appropriate kind." Narcissa ended the topic by walking through the room into the adjoining space decorated with dark wood tones and greens. In the center of the room was a long table that held, Ginny estimated, twenty chairs all around.

"This is where we dine with company. Notice how we have the table set up for only eighteen people, any more and it would cease to be party and turn into chaos. An appropriate amount of people for a party is roughly fifteen to twenty, you should be able to mingle and remember everyone within the first hour."

Ginny nodded, raising her eyebrows at the supposed obviousness of this information. "Tonight we'll be in the family dining room right?" She asked.

"Correct." Following Narcissa through the dining room, they arrived at double doors at the other end. Narcissa pushed one open and as Ginny stepped through she found her herself in a hallway that spanned the entire house from left to right but was barely three people from the door Ginny had just stepped through to the one on the opposite end of the hall. "This hall," Narcissa began, "Is to improve flow during nights when we host dances. We've found it's much more conducive to those attending if they have a nice quiet hallway to retreat to."

"How can you have dances in this house? I mean, I haven't seen a room big e…" Ginny trailed off as Narcissa opened the door across the hall and led them into an gigantic room, lined with floor to ceiling windows on one wall, a large painting of a ball from long ago hanging on the right wall and many smaller paintings depicting various other balls on the left.

"How often do you actually use this room?" Ginny asked, eyebrows rising in awe.

"Well, there's the Valentine's Ball, the spring ball, the summer ball, the fall ball, the All Hallows Eve Ball, the Christmas Ball, and the New Year's Ball. That makes about six or seven." Narcissa answered casually. "We cater to roughly a hundred people at each event, invite only of course, and only those of high society."

Narcissa went on to dictate several rules of hostess-ing, rules Ginny found herself not paying attention to as she realized she didn't know how to dance the way the Malfoy's did at these balls. "Ginny, I hope you've been petrified because you're staring into space and being non-responsive, which are symptoms of not listening."

"I'm sorry, it's just, I…" Ginny trailed off, embarrassed. Narcissa waited. "I don't know how to dance."

There was silence. "We'll change that."

--------------------

Warmth against her back, wind causing the leaves on the tall trees to shake and whisper in the calm, birds chirping in the background and the slight, gentle scents of the garden whisking her mind away to somewhere else; Ginny was at peace in the gardens. Sitting on the edge of one of the fountains, rivulets of water falling into a shallow pool behind her, she felt as if nature had wrapped her in a blanket and was singing her to sleep here in this place that she knew would be her solace.

Around her there were no signs of the house, a fence, walls, rules, anything. The trees and flowers were so high; they towered over her and blocked her view of the manor completely. This maze of beauty already had Ginny dreaming of sleeping outside during a summer night. She wished she could show it to her mum, she had always liked gardens.

Ginny sighed. Although the wide open fields of her home were liberating, she couldn't go anywhere without being able to see a fence or the house. This is what she needed. She inhaled the scents of the garden deeply.

After the tour with Narcissa they had found they still had time left until dinner. Narcissa excused herself, saying she had to take care of some business before dinner anyways and cautioned Ginny to be on time for it. The house had been massive with two libraries, a dozen assorted rooms, that giant ball room, and about fourteen bedrooms from what she gathered. She had decided to come out to the garden to see what it had to offer and she was not disappointed. The sun was still up, inching across the sky in the later afternoon hours.

"Enjoying the scenery?"

Ginny spun around to find a familiar face and the source of the familiar voice. He had grown up quite a bit from the scrawny, pale faced brat he had been. Granted that was three months ago that she last saw him, but he had done a lot of growing in that time. His face, for some reason, looked more filled out. She noticed that he looked like a young adult instead of a pre-teen rodent. His hair wasn't slicked back as it once was, merely gelled into a style. His eyes weren't slits, they were open and calculating, his nose wasn't up in the air, in fact Ginny couldn't see up his nose for the first time in what seemed about seven years.

At first she wasn't sure how to answer him. His tone wasn't cruel or ridiculing, but she could never be sure with him. "As much as I can with the times," She responded turning back, hair falling over her shoulders still in its ponytail.

She heard him step closer and felt the change in the breeze as he sat down beside her. "War times?" He asked.

She turned her head, looking him squarely in the eye, brows furrowed. "Well that all depends mister Malfoy." She stood and dusted off her skirt.

"On what, Miss Weasley?"

She felt her cheeks burn. "On you and your father I suppose."

--------------------

A knock sounded through Ginny's room. She had found escape in the covers of her bed from the confusing conversation she had with Draco earlier that day. His entire self confounded her. He wasn't acting right, he was acting as if they barely knew each other- which was the truth since they rarely ever spoke personally of themselves, but they did know each other enough to know that they didn't like each other at all. This made Draco's behavior even more disturbing.

She pushed herself up off of the mattress and crossed the room, bare feet patting on the hardwood floor. She opened the door and looked down to find a house elf that she remembered as Uula standing with a note in her hand. "For the Miss from the Misses." She stated, holding out the parchment to Ginny. Taking it and nodding to the elf, she turned and closed the door behind her, making her way back over to the bed where she crawled back into its comfort and opened the letter.

_Ginny, _

_Lucius has been called away on business. Tonight it will be you, Draco, and I alone for dinner. The attire you were wearing earlier today will be fine for the occasion. Be in the family dining room by six-forty-five sharp. _

_Narcissa._

Ginny felt a pressure rise up off of her shoulders as if Merlin had done it himself. A pardon on sitting face to face with Lucius was just what the healer ordered to ease Ginny into her first conscience day at the Malfoy Manor. Now all she had to do was get past Draco.

--------------------

Ginny used the skirt of her dress to wipe the sweat from her hands away. Why was she so nervous about this dinner? Narcissa apparently liked her enough to save her life during the Death Eater attack at the Ministry; she would certainly punish Draco for being a twat, wouldn't she? Of course, Narcissa did chronically spoil Draco, even while he was away at Hogwarts.

Conflicted, but even more scared of being late, Ginny pushed open the door to her room and made her way to the family dining room on her side of the house. Taking a deep breathe for confidence, she opened the door to the dining room just as the clock chimed signaling a fifteen minute mark, fifteen minutes until seven.

Sitting at the table was Narcissa Malfoy at one end and Draco to her left. The woman smiled and held out her hand, motioning for Ginny to take the seat of honor at her right. "Come, Ginny, sit down. I'm surprised by your punctuality."

Ginny slid into the chair, refusing to make eye contact with Draco as she did so, and smiled at Narcissa. "A good surprise, right?"

"Of course." Narcissa nodded and a set of waiters set different plates and dishes in front of them. The dinner was so consumed with chewing that not much conversation took place. After the entrée, Narcissa excused herself to her room.

Ginny was aghast. Her jaw was once more picking the small particles of dust up off of the floor as Narcissa exited the room. Sitting in her chair, cheek ablaze in blush, she looked wide-eyed at Draco who was watching her with interest written on his features. "You ran off today in the gardens." He smirked.

That smirk. She hated it. Clenching her jaw, searching for an answer, she nodded. "I didn't feel the conversation would've progressed any. Besides, I was tired."

"So tired that you couldn't say goodbye?" His eyebrow quirked a little as he leaned forward on his elbows. She was beginning to get irritated with him. Why was he playing like this? It was some sort of strange cat and mouse game and she was not one to volunteer for cat food.

"I had a long day, Draco."

"Don't get defensive, Weasley."

"I'm _not_ getting defensive." She spit out, words falling like bricks in the space between them. Draco sat back in his chair, seemingly pleased with infuriating the redhead.

"What made your day so long?" He questioned, reaching for his goblet and sipping from it. His voice was light as if he was only mildly interested. This change bothered her.

"Nothing." She wasn't particularly keen on reiterating the events of the Ministry so soon after it happened. She wasn't quite sure what to think of the situation and therefore had decided not to deal with it just yet.

"I assume it had nothing to do with that little Ministry ordeal. Really if you're going to be at Malfoy Manor you should learn to deal with things like that." The condescending tone- it was about all she could take.

"Like you dealt with Dumbledore falling to his death at your feet?" She almost threw her chair backwards as she pushed herself out of it and stomped out of the room, slamming the door behind her.

As she marched down the hallway, tears burning her eyelids she was confronted by Narcissa, a slightly irritated look on her face. "Did you just slam that door, Ginny?"

Ginny stopped, fear pushing into her gut. "Ye-yes ma'm I'm sorry." She stammered.

"Ginny in this house you may have all the heated debates you want, but please don't slam any of the doors, throw any furniture or valuables, or point a wand in anyone's direction."

"But I didn't throw anything or point a wand at anyone!" Ginny cried, frightened that she had been somehow framed in such a short period of time. Draco was good.

"I listed them for further notice. I'm sure my son is trying to see just how easy it is to get under your skin and if it only takes him a matter of seven minutes to have you storming out of a room I expect the other two rules to be abided by in this house, for it seems they may arise in a very short time." Narcissa paused, her eyes measuring something in Ginny.

"Ginny, my son is a very clever boy. I love him very much but something he picked up from his father was an innate ability to make someone's skin crawl; do not think he has not done the same to me. But you will find people like Draco everywhere in life and so it is important that you listen to what I am about to say. Do not let them get to you where they can see it. Let it bother you all you want it to, go back to your room and cry all the pitiful tears that you must, but face to face never let someone trying to find out how easy it is to break you down know that they can or could or they'll do it with increasing vigor each time."

The words echoed in Ginny's mind as she laid in bed, staring at the ceiling of her new room in her new house, a part of her new life. Her mother would've fussed, her father would have consoled, her brothers would have vowed revenge (well, all except for Percy), even her friends would try and make her feel better. But no one would've told her to deal with it like an adult, and that's exactly what Narcissa had said. As Ginny drifted off to sleep, eyes closing and the world becoming more distant to her, she realized that in a way those words were exactly what she wanted to hear.


	4. Ch3: Ignition

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** berryfreezepop is amazing and found out that the song at the end of the dance seen is "Electric" by Tristan Prettyman. I'm trying to keep everyone as in character as possible because, well, where's the fun if they're not? But for the sake of ending this fic in a timely manner I warn that some scenes (alluding to the dance scene) are OOC. With that said… Don't kill the writer! It's the muses fault!

_Chapter Three: Ignition_

Ginny was stirring before the sun crept over the windowsill the next morning. She had lain awake in her warm covers, watching the sky change colors with each passing moment. This girl was not used to getting the recommended hours of sleep and the curfew enforcing that was throwing her off. As she saw the sun finally reach its rays across the grounds, she felt her stomach knot with excitement about her first day of studies.

Even though she was never vocal about it, Ginny had always loved her studies at Hogwarts. While there she had been called "Little Hermione" or "Hermione Jr." by her professors, although they did mention that she was more mannered about not blurting out an answer. Snape had loved her since she paid attention in class and she impressed him by getting almost perfect scores on her exams (although the memory of him now was almost too painful to bear). In most of her courses she was well informed and passed them with ease, a few more detail oriented topics eluded her, but she studied her best and was still an outstanding student.

With a smile as she rolled out of bed, she made her way to the bathroom and began her new routine. First: tend to oral hygiene, then shower, style her hair with a simple charm, throw on the clothes set out for her by the house elves, and then make any last touches she might need. The routine, similar, to the one she had at home, ensured that she was ready to begin the day easily within an hour, (having been used to fighting over one bathroom shared with at one point five other boys, this was an important lesson). It was seven forty five and breakfast wasn't until eight thirty.

Ginny could only sit at the edge of her bed and try to force an idea into her head of something to do in order to pass time. What would she do though? How did Narcissa expect her to prepare if it were to take two hours? She wasn't up for wandering the house, afraid she might get lost and embarrass herself or never be found again. She didn't want to just stay in her room for Ginny Weasley was restless and needed to be moving about at almost every moment of consciousness in order to stay pleasant to be around.

So the question again faced her, what would she do? There was one place, the garden, that she had found peace yesterday. The only deterrent was that she could risk another run in with Draco. Despite this, Ginny found that garden was in fact the best place for her to be and not be bored to death, and decided that should she run into Draco, she would take Narcissa's advice to heart and stand up to him for once.

-------------------------------------------

As she meandered up and down the cobblestone walkways she felt the pain of the strict fashion requirements of looking rich. She had been fine with the yellow sundress they had picked out (and even thought the thick waistband flattering). She didn't mind the calve-length black leggings beneath it. She also didn't mind the thought-to-be out of season white jacket. But she did feel that the black pumps were too formal and becoming a hazard to her health with each space between the stones.

Flinching as the balls of her feet pounded beneath the pressure of being the brunt of her full weight, she fell upon a stone bench and kicked her shoes across the walkway. "Good grief…" She trailed off, massaging her poor pulsing feet. If this is what it meant to be rich, she might want to reconsider if it was worth it. Now, granted, beauty is pain. She learned that when she first had to try on heels for her brother's wedding over the summer to Fleur (a most unpleasant experience, she nearly fell into the wedding cake). She had hoped that with that sort of incident behind her she might fair better today. Apparently she was fated the same.

"Having problems there Weasley?"

Ginny's skin crawled. Now she really was presented with the question of whether facing Draco today in order to be in the garden was worth it.

The memory of last night, of him forcing her to embarrass herself in front of Narcissa, her blood was boiling in her veins as she turned her head slightly to look over at him. She saw his tall frame, poised so self-assuredly with the sun behind him. Squinting in the light she exhaled, pulling together her best front. "Would you mind moving a little to the left?" She motioned slightly in that direction and, confused, he moved. "Thanks, now you're blocking the sun. Anyways, you were saying something?" She smiled, lifting her eyebrows slightly as if she truly wasn't aware of what he had said before.

Draco's confident smirk faltered momentarily before he crossed his arms in front of him. "I asked if you were having problems, you seemed to be struggling with your feet."

Ginny chuckled lightly, disregarding the obviously arrogant tone. "Well Draco, you know how it goes, beauty is pain. Every once in a while I indulge in letting the blood circulate through my feet." She reveled in the smile slipping away from Draco's cheeks. Apparently a chirpy attitude wasn't what he was expecting to arouse in Ginny.

"I wouldn't suspect you to struggle with that so often." He flippantly replied, shaking a strand of hair out of his face.

Ginny felt her insides burst into flames. As she quashed the desire to lunge and wrap her hands around his pathetic little neck, she began thinking of all the things she wished she could say to him. Instead, she answered, "Seeing as you're not familiar with much of anything having to do with beauty it doesn't surprise me that you don't know what to suspect."

Draco's smirked lit up across his pale face. His pointed nose cast a shadow across his lips making them look like an entrance to a black hole. "Oh, Weasley, a bit torn up about our little spat last night? I didn't mean to insult you so much."

"Please Draco, you didn't insult me." She laughed, brushing off his attempt to enrage her further. Although the fact that he seemed to remain unstirred by her comment about Dumbledore did concern her.

"Generally being attacked, rendered unconscious, and being unfed can cause a girl to be in quite a sour mood. I responded accordingly." Ginny slipped on her shoes, rose and looked at him eye to eye, the heels causing her to be his height. "Do excuse me; I've got matters I must attend to before breakfast. I'll see you there?" She asked, raising an eyebrow.

Draco scowled. "Of course."

Ginny turned about and made her way down the pathway, her victory trumping the pain in her feet.

It was eight by the time she was back in her room. How Narcissa could possibly fill up two hours between waking and breakfast was beyond Ginny. But she was determined to not be caught baffled at what to do. Figuring it wouldn't hurt to get some more beauty sleep in; Ginny laid her head down against her pillow and closed her eyes for a power-nap.

-------------------------------------------

The clinking of chinaware and silverware was nearly deafening at breakfast. Ginny and Draco sat silently, picking away at their fruit and soufflés, Narcissa sensing the tension, cleared her throat gently and dabbed at her lips with one of the linen napkins. Ginny and Draco both stopped eating and watched her carefully. "There will be a ball." Narcissa stated and watched as Draco rolled his eyes and Ginny paled.

"It's not Halloween yet though, what could we possibly have a ball for?" Draco protested. Ginny raised an eyebrow, her stomach doing flip flops. If Draco hated balls then surely Ginny would find them a small step from hell.

Narcissa seemed shocked. "Why Draco, we have a new resident who has not been properly introduced. It would be poor manners not to have a get-together." Ginny could hardly see how "get-together" translated into "ball" and felt herself sink into the chair as Narcissa continued. "She'll have to meet all of the appropriate friends, begin to network, and make the first impression. If we take too long to do this she'll be out of gossip and have missed her chance to rise up in our society. You know that."

Ginny looked at Narcissa, her expression was of someone about to be sick. "The friends?"

Narcissa sipped at her tea. "Yes dear, the wives of all the influential men, the men, their daughters, sons, etcetera."

Ginny let her forehead fall into an open palm. "Now Ginny," Narcissa scolded. "That's not very ladylike. Sit up straight now." Ginny sat up, a look of utter desperation on her face. She could hear Draco snicker.

"I've had one ball in my entire life and that was the Yule Ball and I danced with Neville Longbottom and swayed from side to side, I hardly think I've the qualifications to be all flaunted like a Christmas chicken right now."

More snickering from Draco into his juice.

"That's alright dear, it took Draco years to get down a simple Waltz, poor thing has two left feet. Besides I expected just as much, Hogwarts is not exactly the top school in raising children for society. They fill your head with nonsensical babble that truly does you no good now-a-days. Draco will be your learning partner. In fact, immediately after you two are done eating we'll begin lessons."

Draco and Ginny fell silent. The rest of breakfast consisted of the two staring into their food.

------------------------------------------

Draco and Ginny stood in the center of the enormous Malfoy ballroom. The echoes of Narcissa's heels against the wooden floor were the only sounds as she walked to the record player. Setting down a disc she lowered the needle. The crackling of age bit at the silence before the music began. After a moment, the slow melody of a string instrument followed by the song of a piano drifted across the empty hall.

"You'll begin with the basics and work your way up." Ginny nodded and looked to Draco. She would not have him be the reason she didn't know how to dance and therefore make a fool of herself at the ball. If anything, his being her tutor made Ginny all the more driven to do well.

As Draco inched closer to Ginny, the need to begin dancing becoming eminent, he felt the need to retch, but could tell that Ginny was close to ripping his head off anyways and decided against it. The two stood in the center of the room, letting the rhythm of the music wash over them. Well actually it more or less dripped down their ears since they both were more focused on how they refused to touch each other.

Slowly, Draco's hand rose up from his side and positioned itself on Ginny's lower back. In turn, she let her arm rise up and her hand fall atop his shoulder. Their eyes met and for a second they waited. With one step they closed the distance between them and began to rock with the beat.

With slow steps they moved about the area, Ginny's eyes occasionally drifting down to their feet, Draco clearing his throat to keep her from doing so. No words were spoken as the two quietly maneuvered through the dance movements until Ginny could follow them through without stopping.

It was around this time that Ginny was becoming aware that her body temperature was rising. Stopping for a moment, she removed the white coat she had been wearing. Her bare shoulders tingled with the cool air touching at the skin. Walking back to Draco she swore she felt his hand quickly brush her arm as it took its place once more on the small of her back. He softly pulled her in against him as another song started, clearly a song intended for couples.

By now the two hadn't noticed that Narcissa had taken her leave and let the two fend for themselves, but by now neither of them cared that much. The awkward tension had mounted to a height so indefinable that it was all they could do to not burst into different shades of burgundy.

This song was a recent melody, one that Ginny was familiar with through her Muggle ties. How the Malfoy's got this song was beyond her but she was in love with its sound. The slow plucking of acoustic guitar strings brought her to close her eyes for a moment, letting go of her defenses.

_"Well these tears stain the wood like cups and condensation_

_I am bound to you I cannot break the situation_

_He's every subject of every song_

_Like the wind carries he moves me along_

_The shadows I can't run from they won't let me go_

_He's the ending of a story that I'll never know_

_Yeah he's electric_

_And I can't forget it_

_Yeah he's electric_

_And don't forget it"_

Ginny slowly felt her reserves drop and her shoulders relax. This was one of her favorite Muggle songs and it allowed her to better cope with having to be close to Draco. She even sensed him relax his grip on her, which she didn't mind at all. Being able to feel her fingers was one of her favorite pastimes.

As she was slowly hypnotized by the song their bodies drifted together and without knowing it she began to hum along with the words.

"_Well I know there's hope in them but I wanna walk away_

_Says it's bright in there in lighter shades of gray_

_And though it looks like rain I'm not gonna cry_

_Cause the seasons are changing in your heart_

_And so am I_

_I will fly_

_I will fly_

_I will fly _

_Electric_

_Oh yes seasons are changing_

_Seasons are changing_

_And I'm burning out_

_And I'm burning out_

_I'm electric…"_

------------------------------------------

Dancing lessons lasted until lunch and as if it were to save Ginny any undo embarrassment, Draco was requested to join Lucius during a lunch with some other people leaving just Ginny and Narcissa to lunch together. They were quite conversational, talking about how well dancing lessons had gone and how excited Narcissa was to see how Ginny had progressed (of course excitement for Narcissa was a tone of voice three steps above uninterested and completely proper grammar).

They discussed what kinds of things they might cover in their lessons during Ginny's stay at the Manor and Narcissa insisted that Ginny have her own plot in the garden upon hearing how Ginny loved to be out there.

After lunch they parted ways for a while, the studies not starting until two thirty. During this time Ginny wandered the library, familiarizing herself with which books could be found where. More specifically she found that the potions books were the entire third shelf on the right, the herbology was on the second shelf on the right, the side facing the third, the charms books were the fourth and fifth shelves on the left.

Politics and history had their own shelf against the wall in the back of the room and art, art history, literature and poetry lined the other walls where there weren't windows or doors. Mythology and fable books were the first shelf on the left and the last shelf on the left were what appeared to be the romance novels. During this time Ginny made mental notes of all the books she would like to read but before she could crack any of them open she heard a chime in the hall signaling that two o'clock had arrived.

Fearing that if she started a book she may not be able to set it back down, she grabbed a few that she was interested in reading and took them up to her room before waiting for a letter from one of the house elves instructing her on where the lessons would be had that day.

------------------------------------------

It so happened that lessons were in the library that day and Narcissa began with a general tour of the library, something Ginny found no need for since she had given herself one earlier. After the rather brief trip about the room, Narcissa and Ginny settled down at a table and Narcissa began with setting a book Ginny had noticed in the politics session down on the table.

"Now Ginny," Narcissa began, setting one of her pale hands on the book, her fingers curled around its binding as she looked Ginny directly in the eyes. "I'm going to tell you something that I want you to remember for the rest of the time that I teach you. When I instruct you to read things I don't want you to just be able to regurgitate information back to me. I want you to understand the material. I perfectly comprehend that many of the ideas that are going to be introduced to you are of an adult mind and may be beyond you, though I highly doubt you will have trouble grasping them given time.

"More importantly, I want you to be able to formulate questions based on your readings. For instance," Narcissa turned the book so that the title was right side up facing Ginny. Against the black leather binding it read in italicized gold lettering 'The Prince by Machiavelli.' Ginny didn't recognize the name at all.

"This book, Ginny, is by a Muggle author from centuries ago. This is a very controversial book. In it he describes ways in which a prince must rule in order to maintain a healthy status, lifestyle, and order in his kingdom. This may all be well and good except his idea of a proper ruler can be considered a tyrant. I want you to read selections out of this book of your choosing. Each section is labeled according to what areas he feels he must comment upon. We will not discuss this book again until a week from now."

Ginny felt her fingers itch with anticipation. During her classes at Hogwarts, when the students were given reading assignments, she would usually tuck her book onto her lap beneath the table and begin reading ahead. It wasn't that she didn't feel the need to listen to the professor; it was just that most of the time they were lecturing on whatever it was she was reading. Now that Narcissa was staring at her, making sure Ginny was a part of the conversation and not just student number something in row two, seat twelve of the class, she couldn't very well just grab the book and begin.

"Now, I'm going to give you a project that I'm sure you will find a bit childish but I want you to do it anyway."

Ginny thought to herself, as long as it didn't involve pasta and a glue charm she should be fine with whatever Narcissa said.

"I want you to write a poem. In this poem I want you to address a few things. I want you to talk about your leaving home, you're living here, your experience at the Ministry and your feelings on what may happen during your stay at Malfoy Manor. Most of all I want you to include some sort of future self that you see rising from this time and I want you to convey whether you are pleased or not with that image. I want to assure you I am not trying to pry information out of you by making you write about your feelings. We are studying poetry, though not normally during this time, and generally the most potent muses for such writings are the incidents like those you have been exposed to in the past week."

Ginny nodded, trying to remember everything Narcissa wanted to see in the poem. Ginny had never been one to communicate her feelings to those around her. With the twins help, she had learned quickly that a few tears may just be the motivation for someone to cause more of them to fall with either more pranks or taunting. She had grown up never desiring to be vulnerable to anyone else, and it wasn't as if she was jumping at the opportunity to do it now.

But Ginny also never gave up.

The rest of the lesson went by in a blur of tips in debate skills, types of arguments, and how they could be used in society. For instance, using the Socratic method to prove to someone rather thickheaded that in fact your idea to paint the dining room in Tuscan burnt orange was in fact a better idea than gray (a personal example Narcissa used, apparently Lucius had a sick obsession with the color gray and a terrible hatred for all other colors outside of black).

They didn't touch on history that much, nor did they begin charms or potions, though Ginny was told to take care as next lesson would promise an entirely different curriculum.

At the end of their lesson Narcissa departed in a whirl of light blue cloak, and Ginny was left sitting with a number of texts before her, all of them reeking with the smell of pertinent information. If only she weren't exhausted.

She gathered up what things she could, a quill and some scroll she had brought with her, a few books she decided to take with her, including 'The Prince', and a small paperback focusing on Muggle Greek mythology. One story in particular had stood out to her, that of Cupid and Psyche. She read it over once before Narcissa had come in for the lessons, but wanted to read it again and again, and possibly some of the other myths as well.

Making her way up to her room she nearly tripped four times and properly twisted her right ankle having caught her foot in the rug that ran the length of the hallway.

Cursing, she pushed her way into her bedroom and threw the books onto her desk, kicking her shoe off and marveling in the swelling of her poor joint. Sitting down, massaging the muscle gently, she had the urge to venture back down to the garden once more before dinner. Feeling content that Draco wouldn't be found there, and more so that she could probably find the garden a more healing environment than the confines of her room, she slipped on some black flats, left her white jacket on the chair and departed, limping all the way.

-------------------------------------------

She managed the two flights of stairs from her wing to the landing that made the entryway to Malfoy Manor. She turned the corner and headed down the hall to her right, she found this was a quicker route than trying to make it through the entrance on the right side of the manor. It was a terrible maze to get to that door and she had discovered it her first time down.

She made her way through the hall and was about to turn into the ballroom, which had a much more convenient entrance into the garden, when a deep voice from behind her stopped her dead in her tracks. Turning she found a tall boy with high cheekbones, eyes as that shimmered a caramel and green color, and a smooth caramel color. She recognized him immediately.

She had first seen him sitting at the Slytherin tables with Draco and rarely ever saw him again until her fifth year when they were both part of the "slug club" together. She shook herself out of her memories and blinked. "I'm sorry I didn't catch what it was you said."

He laughed a deep chest laugh that made Ginny go red in the face. "You're limping, where were you planning on heading to with such a swollen ankle?" He nodded to her right foot.

She smiled and chuckled embarrassedly a moment before shrugging. "To the garden, I was hoping to get some fresh air before dinner."

"Well allow me." Ginny wasn't quite sure what was going on but she was hoisted into the air and carried across the ballroom and into the garden. He set her down at the fountain and sat beside her.

"Well," Ginny said, smoothing out her dress, blushing from ear to ear. "That certainly wasn't expected."

"Do you want me to carry you back so you can walk?" She could see the joke in his eyes and hear it in his voice.

Smiling she shook her head, her brilliant red curls shining in the sun as they bounced against her shoulders and back. "No thank you!" They both laughed a bit until a loud slam interrupted them.

"Zabini what in merlins name brought you out here?" Draco questioned, he stopped and his arms crossed over his chest as he saw the two sitting so close together. "Well, well, what've we got here."

"Don't be scandalous Draco." Blaise scoffed. "I was helping an injured lady to her destination; any gentleman would've done the same."

Draco visibly fumed beneath his black collar. "Whatever, flirt around with the Weasley whenever you want but our fathers want to talk with us inside."

Blaise turned to Ginny, who couldn't possibly be any redder, her freckles barely visible against her now crimson skin. "Well if it isn't Ginny Weasley?" Blaise stood to leave with Draco but stopped, pulling a coin from his pocket. Whispering something against the metal, Ginny saw it glow a moment before he took her hand and set it in her palm.

"Whenever you need to get up again, just call my name into this coin, I'll hear you, and I can carry you back up to your room… or wherever you like." With a smile and lifted eyebrows, he was gone with Draco back into the house.

She sat there on the fountain, the sun beginning to set behind her as she looked down at the coin in her hand. At first when he had found out who she was, Ginny was sure he had regretted being so _friendly_ with her. Why would he want to flirt around with a Weasley anyways? Bad press. But this trick with the coin, Ginny didn't quite understand.

Furthermore on her thoughts was that Lucius was most obviously back home and she assumed, from the state of things, that Blaise and his father would be joining them for dinner. Her breathe catching in her chest, she forced a quick pace back upstairs to her room so she could have enough to _properly_ freshen up for the company Malfoy manor was going to have that night. Or maybe it was just for Blaise, but she wouldn't say anything.


	5. Ch4: Moonlit Dance

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** I couldn't find any info on Blaise's dad on the Lexicon so I'm wingin' it.

**Author Notes:** This is taking place over the summer but like explained in the prologue, Hogwarts was shut down. Lucius is a threat but you will later find out why it is beneficial to him to keep Ginny alive. And as always, patience is a virtue! Time will answer all your questions, I swears it! Oh, and this one is short and sweet.

_Chapter Four: Moonlit Dance_

Step by step Ginny's black pumps carried her down to the bottom landing and entryway. Her ankle had since decreased greatly in size and she had cast a simple charm to ease the pain. The yellow dress and black leggings had been set aside when a house elf walked into her room and laid out a second outfit for her and left a letter from Narcissa.

_Ginny_

_Lucius has invited one of his business partners and his son to dinner this evening so your attire will be more formal for the occasion. Please follow the direction of Babsy on how to complete your appearance. Be fifteen minutes early for dinner and meet in the living room downstairs._

_Narcissa_

She had taken that fifteen minutes very literally and now, looking at the large clock in the entryway, waited until it turned exactly fourteen minutes and fifty five seconds until fifteen minutes before walking towards the living room.

She instantly felt embarrassed as she saw Blaise and Draco in deep conversation in a corner. Lucius was looking absolutely terrifying as always, black attire and his snakehead cane, long blonde hair tied back into a ponytail. Obviously Azkaban didn't do much to ruin his sense of self worth, his chin still pushed high into the air. Blaise's father, an intimidating man stood a few inches higher than Lucius and was dressed similarly but it suited him well. His dark skin, much darker than Blaise's, was tense and taught around his jutting facial features.

It seemed most everyone was dressed in black with the exception of Narcissa, Ginny, and Blaise. Blaise was dressed in gray, which suited his skin tone well. Narcissa was in a light blue and Ginny had been obviously instructed to wear an interesting choice of color, white. Her thick strapped, boat neck dress was belted elegantly at her waist and flowed away over her legs, stopping just shy of her knees. Her red curls had been pulled up though a few strands framed her face pleasantly.

The first to notice her was Draco who glanced over, surveyed her momentarily and resumed his conversation with Blaise, uninterested with her presence. Ginny hoped Blaise would turn around and see her, but it so happened the next person to see her was Lucius.

His cold eyes shot over to her direction after he saw Draco look at her and he watched her as she made her way further into the room. His eyes didn't leave her for what seemed like forever until Narcissa followed his gaze and held out her hand. "Come, Ginevra." Ginny went to Narcissa's side and Lucius turned back to Blaise's father. Ginny couldn't read what was in his eyes, but Lucius seemed to be measuring her.

"Antoine, this is Ginevra Weasley, she's our new resident here at the manor." Ginny could feel Narcissa press lightly on her shoulder and Ginny curtseyed slightly, dipping her head. "Ginevra this is Antoine Zambini, he's been recently appointed to the Ministry." Ginny was surprised to have him take her hand and leave a feather light kiss there. His hands were strong, she could tell, but he was unusually gentle.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Miss Weasley." He said his voice deep and a bit raspy.

"And you, Mr. Zambini." Ginny replied smiling lightly until she caught Lucius leering at her again and her smile dropped. The conversation between the adults resumed and she excused herself to take in her surroundings more than she had been able to during the tour with Narcissa.

She now noticed that on the walls hung portraits of assorted family members she assumed, but above the fireplace was a scene set in Paris. The Eiffel Tower was aglow at night, the stars barely visible with their twinkling light and in the foreground was a river where a man and woman sat in a gondola type craft, watching the sky.

"You never called." Ginny jumped at the voice and turned to find Blaise beside her, hands in his pockets casually. "I'm hurt."

Ginny smiled and felt her cheeks burn. "I'm sorry…" Before she could say anything more Ernest stepped into the room donning butler attire and announced that dinner would be served shortly. The group made their way into the dining room and before her head could explode, Narcissa instructed Ginny on where she was sitting.

To her surprise, as many things were so far that night, the table had shortened drastically in length to comfortably seat the six diners. Narcissa and Lucius each sat on the ends of the table; Antoine sat to Lucius' right and Blaise next to him. Ginny sat across from Blaise, and much to her chagrin, to the left of Draco. Her hands remained in her lap as the drinks were poured, an expensive white wine for the adults and some other sort of colored drink that Ginny didn't recognize for the "children."

Dinner was passing smoothly, Ginny was relieved to find that most of the conversation was between Lucius, Narcissa and Antoine, and that, although she spoke very little unless spoken to, neither did Blaise or Draco. That was, until Blaise looked up from his beef Wellington and spoke to Ginny directly. "I hope you're no longer in pain."

Ginny nearly blanched. "Um, no."

"Pain, dear?" Narcissa's eyebrow rose in a truly terrifying fashion. Of course Ginny didn't register at the moment that twisting her ankle was of no consequence and she shouldn't fear any conversation about it, but she couldn't quench her sudden adrenaline rush.

"Yes," she said slowly, color returning to her cheeks in the form of a bright red blush. "I twisted my ankle earlier."

"And how on earth did you manage that?" If it weren't for the chair Ginny would have melted into the floor. Lucius' voice made her skin crawl and the mockery in his voice was almost dripping on its way to her ears.

She swallowed, hoping that when she opened her mouth her voice would produce the words needed to form a reasonable sentence. Her heart raced as she turned to answer him. "I was carrying some texts up to my room and I got my foot caught on the hall rug." Lucius raised an eyebrow of his own and Ginny was aware of every noise in that silent room.

To her right Narcissa's breathing changed just slightly and to her left Draco silenced a chuckle. She had to keep herself from kicking him beneath the table.

"And you fell?" Lucius pressed. He was enjoying this, she knew, as his thin lips pressed into a smile.

"No, I just twisted my ankle."

Before she could think Lucius laid his napkin on the table beside his plate. "And why were you taking the books up to your room?"

Ginny was fretting now, her hands in fists in her lap. "Because I wanted to get reading in ahead of time for my studies."

"No, child," His voice dripped with disdain. "I meant why were _you_ carrying the books? We have house elves that take care of that." He paused. "Oh, I am sorry. I'd forgotten you're not used to this type of lifestyle." Ginny's mouth went dry.

A soft cough from Narcissa and the conversation ended with a change in subject. Ginny began moving pieces of her food around on her plate. She couldn't manage to look at anyone for some time. Beneath the table she felt Blaise nudge her leg. Looking up from her mountain of potatoes, she saw him frowning and looking at her intently. He mouthed that he was sorry and nodding in return, she looked back down at her food.

Lucius went on to talk about the uselessness of house elves, the meaninglessness of the Ministry and how filthy Muggle-borns were. With how Narcissa and Draco responded, Ginny assumed this was normal conversation for Lucius at the dinner table. Finally, the children were excused to do what they wanted until curfew and Ginny found herself immediately retreating to her bedroom, still hungry and feeling utterly exhausted.

Her first dinner with Lucius hadn't faired well.

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The night had drawn on and it was dark and cold outside. Ginny's head was still buried against her pillow in solitude as she waited for sleep to come to her but it never did. Lucius' words had stung her not because he insinuated something about her poor upbringings, but that he had done them in front of other people, namely Blaise.

She was sure beyond doubt that Blaise was well aware of her lack of money, but having it thrown out there as obvious as the sun, well it didn't sit well with her. Which is probably why her stomach was so upset.

With a sigh she rolled herself over, her bottom lip pouting out. It wasn't as if it mattered, she would never see Blaise again and if she did it wasn't as if she had a chance.

A knock sounded at her bedroom door and for a moment she thought it was on another door. Again and knocking and this time she realized it was at her door and she rose out of bed and opened it to find Blaise Zambini in the flesh before her. "Blaise!" She exclaimed, surprise written on her every feature. "What… Why… Is everything okay?"

Blaise smirked and stepped away from the door, bowing deeply, hand out. "Miss Ginevra Weasley I formally request you to take a walk with me through the gardens here at the lovely manor." Looking up from his doubled over position he was the most adorable thing Ginny had ever seen. Blushing to her toes, something she seemed to be perfecting lately with him around, she grabbed her flats (not chancing another trip in heels until necessary), stole a glance at the clock and was on her way.

She knew curfew was at ten thirty but it was only fifteen after nine. Following Blaise down the hallway they walked in silence for a moment before he spoke up. "I'm sorry about dinner."

She picked up her head and blinked. "For what?"

Blaise hopped down the last few steps and stretched out his hand for her to take. "I didn't mean to bring up your ankle if Lucius was going to react like that."

Ginny felt her stomach fill with butterflies. Blaise shouldn't feel responsible for what happened, but it was nice that he was aware of how hurtful it was for Lucius to say that. To Ginny, it meant that Blaise didn't think the same way Draco and his father did, which meant… he might not be totally opposed to a Weasley. Taking his hand, she walked down the last three steps and they made their way into the garden.

"Don't worry about it, Lucius is as Lucius does." She tossed the topic aside, searching for a more pleasant one. "Your dad seems nice."

"Nicer than my mum." He countered, opening the door to the garden. The cool breeze hit her in the face and blew back strands of her hair around. "You have beautiful hair." Blaise brought his hand up to run a finger through one of her tendrils.

Ginny watched him intently, frozen and not sure of how to respond. "Thank you." Her shyness was conveyed too well with the seemingly ever-present blush across her cheeks.

"And eyes." He added, looking into them, his hand never leaving her hair. They stood there for a few moments and when it seemed as if they could stand there no longer, Blaise lowered his hand, took hers into it, and led them to the fountain.

They walked with a slow pace, arms swingy slightly as they took each step. His skin was soft and gentle against hers and the nearness made her wish they could be closer still, possibly holding each other or… dare she imagine it, snogging? She quickly wiped these thoughts from her mind for fear they may show on her sleeve as her thoughts sometimes did, and instead looked up at the moon.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked, watching her.

She stepped up onto the rim of the fountain and walked in step with Blaise. "Nothing. You?"

"Your hair in the moonlight." Ginny refused to look at him. How insufferable! How could someone such good of friends with Draco be so charming, and so cute, and so divinely handsome, and so… so… amazing? She smiled and turned away coyly.

She felt his hand take hers and he pulled gently so that she faced him. Placing his hands on her waist, hers instinctively going to his shoulders, he lowered her to the cobblestone. As their faces met, Ginny mid-air as Blaise lowered her; there was electricity between their lips that betrayed them both without their skins even brushing. Eyes wide and feelings completely open, they looked at each other for a moment before taking hands and walking about the garden.

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Narcissa was talking but sadly, Ginny wasn't listening. It wasn't lessons anyways, Narcissa was talking to Draco anyhow, but Ginny was a thousand miles away. That morning Blaise and his father had left and Lucius had gone as well. The bittersweet departure of company left only Narcissa, Draco, and Ginny to have breakfast.

Draco looked more moody than usual, pushing his eggs into stacks with his fork and Narcissa was ignoring it. She continued on with talk about the ball in Ginny's honor, introducing her to society and such. Poor Ginny might have arranged the food on her plate to form Blaise's face had she not eaten half of it already. At last she looked up and found Draco's jaw open. Ginny looked to Narcissa who was looking back.

"What?"

Narcissa carefully raised one of her well manicured blonde eyebrows and Ginny knew she had been caught in her reverie. Draco snickered but Ginny did a good job in mirroring Narcissa at ignoring. "You have to find a date for the ball dear, and if you can't Draco will have to take you."

Ginny blanched. Feeling sick, she excused herself from the table for a moment and stepped into the hallway. She pushed her back up against the wall and let her head fall back with a slight thud. Her stomach was grumbling, despite having eaten part of her food she was still starving. Draco? He'd make her absolutely miserable! She couldn't let herself be forced with him. Thinking fast, she fumbled for something in her boot until finally the brush of metal she was expecting occurred.

Bringing the gold coin to her lips she whispered lightly, feeling silly for talking to a coin in the first place, "Blaise?"

Moments passed and there was no reply. "Blaise?" Again no reply.

Frustrated, Ginny threw the coin across the hallway and slid down to the floor. Before she could think about what had just happened a voice trailed over to her ears. Lunging for the coin, she brought it to her ear. "Blaise?!"

"Ginny? Is everything alright?"

Her heart fluttered. He was concerned! How dare he be so cute. Sighing she shook her head, though it occurred to her that he couldn't see. "Well you see, there's this ball…" Her throat got dry as she trailed off.

"The generic Malfoy 'welcome-to-society' ball?"

Ginny blushed, she didn't want him to think of it all as generic… she wasn't generic... "Er, yes. And I need a favor…" She had to muster up the courage to continue her sentence but the pit of her stomach was pulling her into the floor. "I need you to go with me. I mean, that is, if you haven't already asked someone. You see, if I don't find someone I'll have to go with Draco and he hates me and I hate him and we hate each other and that relationship works out best at vast distances, not crammed together dancing all night at some ball."

Silence.

Oh god, she thought, how embarrassing! He's probably laughing about it to himself! She felt like she was going to be sick.

"Ginny, of course!"

Ginny about died right then and there. Her heart rushed then calmed, her body cooled off and she felt her lungs open, allowing her to breathe once again. "Thank you! I've got to go, just thank you!" Throwing the coin back into her boot, tugging her skinny jeans back down and straightening her sweater, she hoisted herself off the floor and returned to the dining room where Draco was glaring into his food.

Sitting down at the table, she looked over at Narcissa, her red curls bouncing across her back. The smile on her face could not be stopped so she didn't try as she spoke the next sentence. "I'd forgotten that Blaise and I were going to the ball together."

Narcissa smiled approvingly, and if Ginny didn't know better there was something in the eyes of that woman that showed she knew what had happened. "Really? Well then, after lunch today we'll continue with your dancing lessons."

Breakfast continued peacefully.


	6. Ch5: Betrayal

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Although I have attempted to keep the end of this chapter as PG13 as possible it may still be offensive to people so I will place a warning before the content. It implies an attempt at rape but is a very minimal description of the event.

**Author Notes:** Please heed my warning! I don't want any flames for offending anyone!

_Chapter Five: Betrayal_

Ginny and Draco held each other in an awkward embrace as they moved about the dance floor. The first dance lesson had yielded what could be considered a close embrace and so this second was appropriately distant. Narcissa had yet again left the two to fend for themselves together in the empty ballroom. The music echoed across the tile floor and the rain clouds outside prevented sunshine from throwing beams across the floor.

As the song finally ended Ginny and Draco's arms flew back to their respective bodies. Draco turned hurriedly and pulled his wand out. Flicking it, the music stopped. Ginny watched him cross the room and grab two bottles of water that had been sitting on a table. He turned back and threw one of them to her. Catching it, almost dropping it from the condensation, she slowly twisted the cap and sipped at the rejuvenation fluid.

"Time for a break then?" Ginny asked to break the silence. They hadn't said a word since Narcissa had left over an hour before. To be honest Ginny much preferred the banter between them then the silence they now shared. Draco merely nodded and continued to drink his water.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny turned and headed for the garden, opening one of the French doors and making sure not to slam it behind her. She detested the way he refused to act civil with her. All that required was merely acting like less of an ass but apparently he was more than incapable of doing that.

Sitting down on the edge of the fountain she sipped at her water, remembering those moments that she had shared with Blaise. Since their conversation after that fateful breakfast, Ginny and Blaise had been having frequent conversations via coin. They had since charmed them to make chiming noises whenever one was wishing to talk to the other. There had been too many instances when Ginny had called for Blaise and he was at dinner with his father or when Ginny was called and she didn't notice it until Blaise was yelling (this of course had to happen during her lessons with Narcissa).

Smiling to herself she let her fingers fall to the pocket of her skinny jeans and rub along the rough edges of her favorite piece of change.

"What's got you grinning like the Cheshire Cat, Weasley? Dear old Blaise-y?" Draco plopped down on the opposite side of the fountain from Ginny.

Ginny raises a speculative brow. "A Muggle reference, Draco? How unusual. I wouldn't have pegged you for a fan of Alice in Wonderland."

"I'm a wizard, Weasley, not stupid. I may not think Muggles are worth my time but I certainly can't be against them without possessing information about them; that would just be idiocy." There was a silence between them. She had to agree with him on the concept. "You know he's no good."

Ginny almost dropped her water. Why, the arrogance of him! Telling her who was good for her and not. Well, he actually hadn't said _for her_ but he had insinuated that Blaise was beneath expectations in some way. "And how exactly does that concern you?" She spat back, turning around and catching the outline of him from around the spouting stone tower in the center of the basin of the fountain and through the spewing streams of water.

He was sitting leisurely, legs thrown along the rim, elbows holding him up as he looked at the trees. Ginny thought, he must be thinking of ways to kill the baby birds. "It doesn't." He replied, and swung himself so he stood up. "Come on, break's over."

They didn't say another word to each other for that whole dance lesson and frankly Ginny didn't care. But as she walked back to her room to ready herself for dinner she couldn't help but wonder why Draco had concerned himself with letting slip that information, no matter how false it was. Were his motives to drive Ginny away because Blaise was his friend and Ginny was beneath him? Or was it because since she and Blaise had started talking, surely Blaise had less time for Draco?

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Over the next few months, Ginny and Narcissa worked closely concerning Ginny's lessons. She was honestly amazed by the truth that was in what Narcissa had told her. She really didn't need any of the other subjects that had been offered to her at Hogwarts, in fact she was making due with all of the lessons she was currently in, and making what Narcissa considered excellent improvements.

Ginny was of course very proud of herself and could only find the purest joy in continuing to impress Narcissa. At dinner when Narcissa would tell Lucius of their lessons Ginny could even see a look in his eyes that told her something that she knew he didn't want to admit himself. She knew that she was doing better in her lessons than Draco could've ever done. It wasn't his fault, he just wasn't academically inclined and Ginny was. Ginny was also socially inclined, much to her surprise.

Narcissa had taken her out on quite a few luncheons with the other wives of Death Eaters, or at least Ginny thought so. Those were the only women she figured Narcissa would spend time with. At these lunches or sometimes breakfasts, Ginny would stun them with her recollection of history or laws or current events. Ginny also knew that she was prettier than some of the other daughters. She only knew this because she had seen them personally and could testify to their fashion blunders. Many of them lived in the sun, scorching their skin into a tight dry canvas on which they layered make up and other sparkley details and designed themselves only in trendy clothing which sadly was far too revealing for their own good.

Ginny on the other hand, now picking her own outfits out of her closet, would always choose classic pieces and adorned her face with moisturizer every night before dolling herself up the next morning. Ginny could also see the jealousy in the eyes of those mothers whose daughters she embarrassed. And in Narcissa's eyes? Well there was nothing but bold selfish pride.

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Ginny and Narcissa sat silently in the sitting room. Ginny was running her fingers over the luxurious fabric of the chair she was occupying and Narcissa was running her eyes over the invitations they were going to send out to the guests for the dance in Ginny's honor. As Ginny waited Narcissa searched every square centimeter of the invitations until she was satisfied that there was nothing more that could be improved upon.

The invitations were scroll parchment decorated with Greek inspired hieroglyphics depicting two lovers embracing in a dance pose. "Lovers Through Time" was written in calligraphy across the top of the parchment and beneath it were the details of when, where, etc. It did note that the party was in honor of Ginny and her coming out to society and that everyone was to dress in costume depicting famous couples through time.

Narcissa nodded and Ginny smiled, she knew exactly who she and Blaise were going to be.

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Ginny watched her green eyes twinkle in the mirror in front of her. Her eyelashes were mascara-ed and curled, her eyelids painted with gold sparkles. She looked intently at the reflection and wondered how it could be that this was real. This all had been quite a ride and she loved it more and more with each day.

She turned her head, watching her golden earring dangle inches beneath her lobe. The emerald gems shimmered in the light of her room and complemented her pink complexion and bright red hair. A few tendrils fell around her face, framing it nicely. The rest were twisted back into an up-do reminiscent of ancient Greece. She smiled, pleased with her appearance. Butterflies fluttered in her stomach, she only hoped that Blaise would be appreciative of how she looked that night.

Picking up the skirt of her dress she turned away from the mirror and made her way to the bedroom door. Turning the knob, she stepped out into the hallway and listened to the silence of the corridor before letting the click of the knob sound behind her. She could feel her mind turn with all the possibilities of the night. She couldn't contain how excited she felt about the whole experience, and to think, she was dreading this night just a few months before.

She supposed she had Draco to thank. Without his teaching she wouldn't even be properly prepared for the night. It had been about two and a half months since she had been told about the ball. She looked up at the grandfather clock in the hall as she passed it. The date read clearly September 21st. She sighed; she should be in Hogwarts right now. But is that truly where she should be? She wondered now if that school had actually been the best place for her. As each day passed she found it easier for her to assimilate into the society that Narcissa had introduced her to.

More than anything though, she could finally explore a life outside of what Weasley traditions she was expected to maintain. She didn't have to cook and clean every day, she didn't have to pretend like she was a little boy, she didn't have to play pranks on people in order to not be prude. There were so many freedoms now. Yes, she had to watch her language which she didn't even notice not using anymore. Yes, she did have to dress like a lady as opposed to wearing jeans and a tee shirt around the house, but she appreciated being able to wear those things and now that she could walk in heels and not endanger herself, she was confident in those clothes.

She turned the corner at the staircase and step by step she went down until finally she found herself on the platform above the stairs from the entryway. Beneath her Blaise stood at the bottom of the stairs, back to her as he looked around at the guests walking by. He was gorgeous. He was wearing white linen pants that hung loosely around his legs but tightly around his waist. His torso was bare except for a set of wings that he had magicked onto his shoulder blades. They were magnificent, falling just beneath his bum and giving him an air much less of Cupid and much more like an angel.

Ah, yes, they were Cupid and Psyche.

Ginny smiled as Blaise turned and she caught his eye. His jaw fell open and she could feel herself blush as he watched her go down the last steps. Her hand lightly grasped the rail of the stairs until she got to the bottom and Blaise quickly claimed it for himself, twirling her around and then feasting on her with his eyes. "Ginevra Weasley…" He trailed off, voice light and filled with amazement.

Ginny was indeed a vision in her gown. It was bone colored fabric basically tied around her curves with gold rope. The rope crossed just above her breasts, just beneath her collar bone, crossed beneath her shoulder blades, crossed again over her stomach and then tied in the back at the small of her back, leaving a few inches dangling for affect where the rope transitioned into golden ribbon. Ginny loved magic.

Her dress flowed around her legs and as she lifted the skirt to walk her golden strappy heels which wrapped around her calves became visible from beneath the fabric. As they walked, her heels clicked against the floor and his were silent.

They entered the room and Ginny felt like she was the sun. She was brought around to each of the prestigious families and introduced.

"Ginevra Weasley, my charge." Narcissa's face was lit up with pride, even Ginny could see it as she brought Ginny forward to her friends. They each nodded in reply, and raised their curiously preened eyebrows at the new socialite before them. Ginny could sense their distaste… and their jealousy. Their daughters were careening around the dance floor with their dancing partners in a most salacious manner. Ginny did all she could to not smile to herself.

Narcissa of course, was right about everything. The girls nowadays weren't proper and Ginny was the best example of what a young lady should be, and their mothers knew it. Ginny smiled a bit, she was surprised about agreeing with Narcissa, and seeing her point of view on things. Ginny never thought that she'd be able to connect with a Malfoy, she never thought she'd be accepted in this kind of society, nor that she would survive. But she did, and she was, and she could.

Before she could think of much else, Ginny was brought in front of Blaise's father and a woman she was not familiar with. "Ginny," Blaise turned to face her. "You remember my father."

Ginny smiled and curtseyed a bit. "Of course, Mr. Zabini it's wonderful to see you again." Mr. Zabini raised an eyebrow and smiled. It was odd, all of these people raising their eyebrows. It made Ginny want to raise an eyebrow but she wouldn't dare sully her sanity.

"It's a pleasure miss, I hope your ankle is better." Mr. Zabini smirked. Ginny flushed to her ears and nodded. "This is Maya, my fiancé." He brought forward the woman next to him and she nodded.

"It's a pleasure to meet you." Ginny curtseyed for the thirty fourth time that night.

"The pleasure is mine." There was something in this woman's voice that made Ginny uncomfortable. Very uncomfortable. Smiling when Narcissa came to gather her up, she excused herself and followed Narcissa away.

"That's Maya Sukiyumi, Antoine found her in Japan one year. She's a gorgeous woman but an amazing adversary. I had the fortune of meeting her one year for the Triwizard tournament, she competed for her school and nearly won. She's amazingly clever and severely jealous. I've heard she and Blaise have to compete for Antoine's attention." Narcissa handed Ginny a drink and Ginny sipped at it.

"Why do I not feel comfortable around her?" Ginny asked, comfortable enough with Narcissa to confide in her. Ginny turned and saw Blaise and his father talking, by Maya hanging onto Mr. Zabini's arm.

Narcissa smiled and followed Ginny's line of site. "Because you have amazing instincts. Maya is a miserable woman and she's not just jealous of Blaise. I suspect she's even jealous of you, dear one." Before Narcissa could explain more, the music started and Blaise swept Ginny onto the dance floor.

They swayed from side to side and Ginny was twirled about, feeling no less than the belle of the ball. She could see out of her peripheral vision other girls looking at her with a mixture of curiosity and jealousy. Considering her upbringing and her previously low social status, she smirked and felt her heart flutter at the idea of others envying her. She had for so long been one of those girls jealous of the princesses of the school, twirling about in their cliques and their oblivions. Now Ginny could have hers.

As Ginny and Blaise threw themselves into the throws of the night, Ginny was whirling about in a blurred concept of time. It wasn't until the music had dimmed and she could hear the eleven chimes of the clock that she realized she had been dancing for roughly three hours. Feeling her feet pulsing, she pulled Blaise off to the side. Chuckling, the two nearly fell against each other before Ginny could find a chair to occupy. "I've got to sit down, I can barely walk!" She exclaimed, looping her arm through his.

Any normal person would be sweating profusely from the dancing they had done but the temperature in the room was cool and neither Ginny nor Blaise showed signs of that embarrassing plague. As she caught her breathe she saw a group of boys in the corner motion of Blaise to join them. Blaise turned to her and she understood, motioning for him to join them.

"I'll be right back." He smiled and left with a squeeze of her shoulder.

Ginny grabbed up the skirts of her dress and removing her shoes, massaged her poor feet. Looking around the room she observed the goings-on of the society she conceded she was now a part of. In one corner were Blaise and his friends, chuckling over something and slapping each other's backs. In another were the daughters of all the women, making flirtatious faces towards the first corner and continually checking their appearances in the nearby corner.

On one side of the room the adults stood in congregation sipping at their wines or other various colored and deeply odorous liquors, laughing at jokes, speaking in hushed tones of gossip, discussing business or merely watching as Ginny was. She tried to find Narcissa but wasn't successful, she wondered where the woman had gone. Surely she hadn't retired, she had told Ginny that it was entirely bad manners to be a hostess of a party and disappear unannounced. Ginny figured then, that if she had disappeared, it wasn't unannounced.

Taking up her shoes and sliding them back on her feet, she orchestrated the ties around calf until she was once again in full Psyche gear. Standing to resume her spot on the dance floor, mingling if not spending time with Blaise, she felt her feet give way and promptly fell back against her seat. A hand on her shoulder jarred her. Beside her stood three girls, one with jet black hair who now removed her hand from Ginny's shoulder, and two more with brown hair. They looked down at Ginny with that look of jealousy that Ginny could now so easily recognize.

"Ginevra Weasley?" Ginny felt her heart race. She was not up for a conflict on her night of social introduction.

"Yes?"

The girls smiled and laughed with each other. Ginny found this behavior odd and slightly irritating, standing she found herself to be slightly taller than one of them, but average height in the group. "What do you want?" She pressed for the reasoning behind this encounter.

"You're here with Blaise right? Good old Zabini?" Ginny's brows furrowed. Good old Zabini? That was an odd nickname for someone and these girls were not acting as if they had Ginny's best interests at heart.

"What about it?" Ginny challenged. Her fists were clenched, how dare these girls speak of Blaise that way!

The first girl rose her eyebrow in reply and shook her head. "What a naïve little girl, dealing with someone you can't handle." The girls behind her giggled. "Why don't you ask Blaise himself what his plans were for you tonight? The ones he's bragging about to his friends right now." The girl pointed an anorexic finger to the corner where Blaise was speaking in cautious tones to his colleagues.

None of this looked good. Feeling the room closing in on her, the fear of another illusion, more lies, she stepped away from the girls who went back to their place in their own corner and continued to flirt and pretty themselves. Ginny made her way for the hall and stepped into it, someplace that she could think about what she had just been told. As she stared at the floor, a figure leaned up against the wall beside her. "Problem, Weasley?"

Turning, she saw Draco Malfoy poised like a vulture in a dying tree. Blushing, she turned away. He was a parasite, feasting on her misfortunes when they occurred. Why could he not find her when she was in a perfectly good mood? "Draco, be honest with me," She started, turning with seriousness, facing him and staring him down in earnest. He seemed shock that she would approach him so straightforward about anything. Eyes wide with this surprise, he waited for her to continue. "Blaise… is he… does… What is he really doing? With me?"

She couldn't let him see her so broken down but she had to know the truth and if anyone knew it would be Draco. As she swallowed harshly, fighting back the tears welling up in her eyes, she watched as a variety of emotions crossed Draco's face. He shook his head and began to walk away from her.

"Draco!" He stopped and turned back to her.

"Leave him, Ginny, don't mess with it." And with that Draco disappeared down the long corridor outside the dance hall.

Well, Ginny had had enough of this and knew what it was that she had to do. Walking back into the dance hall she found Blaise crowded by her friends in their corner. Crossing the room to his side, she tugged on his hand. Nodding, he turned and walked away with her, and as she looked back to the group of boys that they left behind she saw their eyes and the smirks on their faces and knew what she had been told was true… but needed to hear it for herself from Blaise.

Deciding it best to not speak about such things where others could eavesdrop, she brought him up to the hall where her bedroom was, but took care not to bring him into it, knowing what might be on his mind. As they stood there in the hall, the thrumming and humming of the room beneath able to be heard even there, Ginny could feel her heart dropping. "Blaise…"

He frowned. "What's with all of this? What's going on Gins, why are we doing the secrecy thing?" He brought his hands up, his gentle hands up to her face and brushed her cheek.

"No!" She pushed his hand away. "Blaise tell me the truth! Are you just trying to… to… Are you not even interested in me? Everyone's saying it! Don't lie to me I can't take it!" Her back was pressed against the wall, she could barely stand on her own it was too hard with all of these thoughts flying about and the emotions swirling inside of her.

Something happened next that she couldn't explain, and didn't want to. Blaise reddened in his face and before Ginny could react, her arms were grabbed and she was pushed back into her room, the door closing and locking behind them.

((Warning time! Please discontinue your reading and move to the next chapter if the scene described at the beginning of the chapter in the Chapter Notes is offensive or rough to you.))

"Don't struggle" Blaise's hands were ringing Ginny's arms nearly off. "You know you want this!"

"Get off me!" Ginny screamed, twisting and flinging herself against his grip. As the two wrestled, she screamed at the top of her lungs for help, but she knew the familiar sound the silencing charm Blaise had put on the door. Refusing to give up hope she pulled away from him, feet pulling against the floor, back bent and fighting for the freedom of her limbs.

A sharp slap to the side of her face made her dizzy and she nearly fainted. Another pushed her to the ground. Her ears began to ring and everything in the room went silent as grayness narrowed her sight. She could feel the cold air of the room bite at her skin as he started to rip her clothes off. Through her tears she saw the gilded ribbon that once wrapped about her body was now falling through the air and piling up on the ground. Tears streaming down her face, eyes closed in fear she did her best do fend him off but felt him overpowering her as her consciousness waned…


	7. Ch6: Broken

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Okay, so here it is, the beginnings of a beautifully awkward friendship… you asked for it.

**Author Notes:** Plot back online I promise! Again I reinstate what I've previously said: if out of character-ness ensues it is purely to further my ever changing plot. Be happy it happened so well and no one died. Yet… MUAH HAHA…

_Chapter Six: Broken_

Glass shattering woke Ginny from her dark reverie. Not enough time to think straight, Blaise was ripped away from her and a scuffle started. Looking to the door she saw it closed just as tightly as it had been before, the lock down. Turning her attentions back under the moonlight she couldn't make out who else was in the room but by the sounds of the grunts and shapes of the bodies this man (at least she assumed it was a man) was of similar age and size to Blaise.

Grabbing at the ground she held her dress to her body with one hand and pulled herself behind the bed to avoid the fight. As she sat there, heart beating a thousand times a minute, she heard the feet of Blaise and what she hoped would be her savior scrape against the floor, breathes being held and exhaled, hits taken and made. In a whirlwind of physical dispute, her bedroom door flew open and one of the aggressors was thrown into the hallway. Fearing that Blaise had been the winner, she pushed herself back against her bed.

Breathing rapidly, the victor approached and as a hand came to rest on her shoulder she screamed. "Ginny! Ginny! It's me! It's Draco!" She stopped fighting. Looking through the shadows and darkness she began to recognize the familiar outlines of his body and immediately fell apart. Body wracking with sobs she attempted to muffle she pushed herself up with aid of the bed and distanced her self from her savior.

"I didn't need your help! I could've taken care of it on my own!" She hollered, embarrassed that all along Draco seemed to have had some foresight into Blaise's true intentions. Face draining of all color, stomach flopping with now both disgust of what Blaise had previously attempted and humiliation that Draco had found her this way, she could barely stand. Dropping to her knees she shakily held herself above the floor with one hand as the other grasped white-knuckled the tatters of her dress to her chest.

"I-I" she started, gasping for air as she felt the room spin around her. "I didn't…"

Before she could continue she felt Draco's hands on her cheeks lifting her eyes to his. "My god Weasley, you can't be serious." His eyebrows were furrowed with a deep concern that Ginny found foreign but so comforting. Feeling ridiculous for refusing his obviously genuine attempt to help she fell against him and let the tears fall.

---------------------

Draco watched his ceiling do nothing. It was a shame; he was certain that after a time it would begin to move. Nothing always went as expected though and he decided to give up on his pursuit. Turning over onto his side he began to get hot and groaned. Things just couldn't go his way. Rolling over, he landed with feet flat on the floor and walked to his window, opening it and letting the wind blow on his face.

He laid his chin on his hands, kneeling before his window sill. He was still beside himself about Blaise and Ginny. Not that it affected him or anything, but that it deeply confused him. Blaise had always been the type to mess around and to use women to well…for lack of better terms, amuse himself. But he generally did his best to aim high. In conclusion, the choice of the redheaded Weasley baffled him beyond belief. What was it that drew Blaise to her? Clearly she was a Weasley, there wasn't any doubting the origins of her red locks. Because of her Weasley nature she was also dirt poor, Blaise knew that.

Alright so she wasn't terrible to look at.

Okay, she was downright bloody gorgeous but that didn't change who she was! So what if her red hair was actually a plus? He couldn't deny that the monotonous brunette and blonde had been erased by the appearance of this fiery ruby gem.

During their dancing together he had had the pleasure of roaming his hands about her slender waist, resting them on the curve where her bum started. Of course he would blow it off as stance but he was taking privileges with the fact that she was unaware of proper dancing etiquette. His time living with her had also allowed him to gaze on her as she poised herself in different positions while reading, the way her body moved as she walked, the tilts of her face and the way the angles of her face glowed under the light.

He was being ridiculous. Grunting, he stood and discarded his partially unbuttoned shirt. It was far too warm in his room. Feeling unnerved by the filthy thoughts that invaded his mind, he paced. Draco couldn't deny his physical attraction to Ginny. But he also knew that she annoyed the devil out of him. Her whole "I'm the damsel in distress" bit was unappealing and made him want to vomit. Her lack of confidence merely showed the social deference she had allowed herself to become victim to. Even though Draco partially believed in the inferiority of the poor, it was even worse when they bowed down to it instead of at least attempting to better themselves.

Sighing, he coughed and put his palms on his sides. Why all of a sudden was he plagued with thoughts of defiling her body? Why all of a sudden was he picturing Ginny between a wall and a hard…body part?

Punching his fist into the nearby armoire he jumped at the scream that echoed from across the house. Blinking he crossed the room to the window and looked out at the grounds. There was nothing amiss outdoors. Pursing his lips and frowning, he waited and sure enough he heard another. One that he could place perfectly. He had heard that scream before over the years at Hogwarts and knew its origination. A feeling of panic gripping his stomach, he reached for his broom and dove out of his window.

Taking flight on the familiar tool, he swirled about, making a beeline around the trees for Ginny's window. Seeing it shut tightly he pulled back on the broom and stuck both feet out to bear the brunt of the impact. Sadly enough, he knew what scene he would happen upon before he saw the shadows through the glass. He knew who it was that elicited the scream of utter terror from the rambunctious girl. He knew Blaise was once more attempting to force himself onto another girl, play his charms so that he wound up with another conquest and this time he had met someone that wouldn't reply to his wiles.

The shattering of glass stunned him momentarily into a lapse of action until the equally shocked expression on Blaise's face melted into a grimace. Tossing his broom aside, Draco lunged forward at his fellow Slytherin brother and would later discover that he didn't think twice about pulling the boy off of Ginny and breaking the distance between them with a swift punch in the face. A tussle ensued but finally Draco arose victorious. Casting Blaise into the hallway with a final look that instructed him very clearly to get the hell off of Malfoy property, he slammed the door shut and turned back to the figure balled up by the bed. Crossing the room to where she was curled up, he set his hand on her shoulder. As she screamed he panicked, hoping that should they be happened upon that he wouldn't be blamed for Blaise being a dick.

"Ginny! Ginny! It's me! It's Draco!" He shook her lightly. As she stopped her screaming he watched as she broke down in front of him.

"I didn't need your help! I could've taken care of it on my own!" He watched her stumble across the room in an utter display of insanity. Standing he tried to comprehend why she was behaving this way. He watched as she did her best to play off that she was fine only to drop to her knees in front of him. Could it be that she was embarrassed by this? Well how stupid! It's not like it was her fault after all, Blaise was just getting violent, it's not as if she had done anything wrong. Blaise was known for being a bit rough with girls.

"I-I… I didn't…"

He couldn't let her continue acting this way and dropped down in front of her, bring his hands to her cheeks so she looked at him. "My god Weasley, you can't be serious." It appeared he had been correct in his deduction and she finally succumbed to his not being a total ass and cried.

It was then that he realized that her beautiful dress was nearly ripped to shreds from shoulders to waist. His stomach knotted as realization dawned on him. It had been only a few times but he had happened upon his poor bloodied up mother after his father had gone on tirades. You wouldn't think beatings and rape were commonplace in a marriage but Narcissa and Lucius' union was far from the love-centric fairytales portrayed at any altar. Draco would be wandering about the palace late at night to stumble across his parents bedroom door cracked open. Curious he would peak in to find his mother sprawled on the ground barely conscious.

He stopped his memories and tended to the shaking figure before him. He curled his arms under her legs and around her back and lifted her off the ground.

"Let's get you into some proper clothing." He muttered lightly. "Then you can get some sleep."

Jerking, Ginny held him tighter to her, something that shocked him more than anything else that had happened that night. First she wanted him to leave her alone and now she wanted him to stay by her side. "Please don't leave me! Don't leave me alone where he can get me!" She sobbed, burying her eyes in his neck. Feeling his insides squirm, he knew he couldn't.

Nodding, he went to her dresser and set her down a moment. He was expecting her to cross her arms protectively around her chest and lean against the dresser like he had secretly watched his mother do after frequent arguments with his father but Ginny fell to the floor in a mess. Quickly grabbing some of her things, he helped her back up and conceded to holding her the rest of the way. Positioning them on his broom, they floated out through the window carefully so neither would be caught by the remaining shards of glass, and they made their way to Draco's room.

Setting her down on his bed, he went into his bathroom and drew water into the tub, pouring soap into the mixture to create thick, lathery foam. The smell alluded to better times, a scent of vanilla and chamomile that relaxed him and tortured his thoughts with guilty temptations to jump in himself and forget what hadn't happened entirely to him. He returned to the room to find Ginny staring into the distance of his room. He approached her slowly, not wanting to alarm her with sharp movements or have her relive any moment from the previous minutes.

"Ginny, can you stand?" Draco looked her over with a genuine concern.

Ginny said nothing in reply to him but meekly attempted to lift herself off of the mattress only to fall knees first onto the hardwood floor. Wincing for her, Draco drew her close to him and did his best to quiet the new sobs erupting from her trembling form and carried her into the bathroom.

She was still clinging to her dress as Draco set her into the water. He could see her visibly relax once her shoulders were submerged beneath the warm water. Around her the suds popped and fizzed with a gentility that she had not most recently been treated with.

Slowly he took his hands to her hair and let down the auburn tendrils so that they made a pool around her of fire. Slowly she seemed to regain her senses and she watched as Draco methodically wetted a wash rag, doused it with soap and rubbed her arms lightly. His ministrations slowly created a calm in Ginny that allowed her to begin to digest what all was presently occurring to her. Feeling somewhat silly for sitting in a bathtub with clothes on, she pondered asking Draco to leave so she could properly bathe, but found that this moment was far to fragile to shatter.

"Thank you." Ginny ventured, looking up through her soaked hair at Draco.

He paused in scrubbing her back free of the dust and bits of blood from scrapes she had gotten somehow. From the angle he was at Ginny looked so, so innocent and frail. It was a side of her had never let himself see before, a side that pulled at his heartstrings. He set the rag on the side of the tub and sighed, elbows poised on the rim. "Ginny there's no reason in the world you should be thanking me right now."

She frowned in confusion. "But, you saved me from what he was going to do. I wasn't being the least bit grateful back in the room, I was being ridiculous. I have every reason to thank you." She played with the edge of her dress. She had so many thoughts and dreams for this night. Dancing with Blaise until the music stopped than retreating to their place in the gardens and dancing just the two of them in the moonlight before giving sweet goodnight kisses and parting ways until they could be together again. Now she could care less if he was killed and they would never cross paths again.

Draco smiled at her admitting to lack of grateful attitudes towards him but his smile was sad. "Any human being in their right mind with a heart would have done what I did. That deserves no thanks." He slowly let his fingers traces circles in the water, ripples moving out from each fingertip until they hit Ginny's body and dispersed.

Ginny watched him as he did this, fascinated by this side of him that she had never seen before, a Draco with a heart? It couldn't be! But again, she thought back to times in school when it seemed he went out of his way to be "too busy" to bully her or her friends in the hallway or "too good" to push her around when it was just the two of them. She may have been hallucinating but there were times when she could've sworn that he nodded to her cordially in passing. Of course, Draco was alone and there was never anyone around to confirm but she knew she had seen it at least once.

Maybe there was something more to Malfoys, at least she knew there was something more to Narcissa. But now Draco had another side too. If she stayed in this mansion too long she might found out that Lucius actually had some terrible childhood that would account for what an asshole he was. Actually she couldn't think of anything that would explain any of Lucius' actions and let that thought die quickly. "But you didn't have to do it yourself, you could've gone and gotten Narcissa or a butler or maid or something, you didn't have to fight off your own friend for… well…"

"What? For you?" Draco pressed. Ginny blushed under the implication that she could possibly think that Draco would do anything for her. "Ginny regardless of who you were I would've come to your aid. Despite what you may think I don't hate you." And there it was, that side of Draco Malfoy that she had almost prayed she would never see, prayed that it would never complicate the easy hateful relationship the two of them shared. But now Draco was human and had a heart and morals to boot.

This would complicate things a great deal from now on. She could see it now, Draco denying that this conversation ever took place and he was really doing it all for the good of the Malfoy name, not to help her out. But as she looked up into his gray-blue eyes and the way his facial features were tense in seriousness she knew in her heart that none of that was true, that Draco was being honest.

"Draco I, I've never hated you. Either, I mean. It's just that it was easy to not like you and all at school. When I was with the others." She watched him relax a bit. Why her words would have that effect she had no idea, possibly to quell any thought that his feelings of non-hatred wouldn't be returned and therefore he would be embarrassed forever for not hating a Weasley who hated him.

"Well you were an easy target around them, sorry. Especially with Potter fawning over you like you were stupid and your brother treating you like a two year old." He smirked to himself in memory of the dream team that so many times proved to him that despite whose favorite you were, you could still be as dumb as a box of rocks.

Feeling more comfortable now, she cleared her throat slightly. "Do you think I could…" She looked at the water. "Finish up real quick? On my own?" She added for clarification.

Draco blanched with his own onslaught of embarrassment, righting his posture and standing abruptly, almost slipping on the water puddles that dotted the floor. "Of course! Of Course! I've got your clothes right here. I'll just…" He motioned with a pointed finger to his adjoining room. "Be in here." He added and speedily made his exit.

Smiling to herself, she though of how the past few moments had transpired in the odd manner that they had. Slowly she remember the beginning of the night and a fresh batch of tears were heated behind her eyelids ready to take form and join the massive reservoir of water surrounding her. Gently disrobing and taking toll of her minor bruises and cuts she cleaned herself up.

----------------------------

Narcissa watched with hesitancy as Ginny left the dance with Blaise. Her own son had taken his exit earlier in the night finding the company much to his distaste. She assumed he was going to go be moody in his room about how he wasn't the center of attention, oh how she wished he wasn't.

Her slender fingers gripped her champagne flute as she followed Lucius around dutifully to each of his personal guests. They were of course all Death Eaters, presently occupied with their wives in deep conversation surely of the news that had developed in the Ministry. She had kept Draco and Ginny fairly unaware of the deaths and the manner of them that had occurred after she and Ginny had left the building but soon enough the gossip had gathered. She feared Ginny or Draco may have heard but those thoughts faded as Lucius brought her to the side of the Rookwood and Mulciber.

"Lucius, wonderful party." Augustus cackled. Narcissa was always disturbed by the pock-marked man. He had been one of the spies in the Ministry with Lucius and for some reason they decided that with that in common they should become fast friends. Lucius never spoke of him but he addressed him in public which was enough.

August now turned to Narcissa and took her hand, leaving a kiss against her soft skin. She thought she was going to start to deteriorate beneath his lips. Forcing a cordial smile she let out a charming laugh. "Now Augustus, behave yourself!" She nodded to Mulciber who sneered in return as usual but nodded anyways. She kept her smile pasted to her lips, knowing what would happen should she put on rude airs around Lucius' fellow Death Eater friends.

Only once before had she shown displeasure with his invited company. He had invited Nott, Crabbe, and Goyle to dinner one night and upon hearing their vicious stories about torturing Muggles she excused herself with feeling sick. She of course had meant to play it off as she had not felt well all day but Lucius saw right through her guise. After the three men had left he barged into their room and had beat her to near unconsciousness. Draco had heard the noise, knocked on the door and ended the match but she never forgot that lesson.

She was shaken from her nightmarish memories when Mulciber spoke, his voice making the hairs on the back of her neck rise. "Well I suppose you heard the news then, meeting tonight at midnight." No, she had not heard the news. Mulciber was speaking to the other two men, having the general disposition to dismissing her existence once formalities had occurred, but all the same the news meant something to her. Lucius had a rude ritual of coming back in harsh moods after meetings and taking it out on her poor head. Thank goodness the house elves would come along after him and tend to her, forcing her body to heal when all it wanted to do was die.

"I see," Lucius trailed off and Narcissa listened for the number of gongs as the grandfather clock went off. Twelve. Just as the number had occurred to her, Lucius wrapped his hand around his forearm and turned to Narcissa. "I will return, show the guests out." And with that half of the guests apparated leaving the others only to assume where they had gone (and in most cases they were correct).

Narcissa showed the guests out, assuring them that the Ministry must have urgent business but that all was well. Just as the last guest left she felt a pang in her stomach.

Brows furrowed in confusion she held her weight up on the banister of the staircase, waiting for clue of what had caused the pain. Another and her head was light. Dawning on her that Ginny must be in some kind of trouble, she pulled herself up the stairs, heart racing with urgency to rescue her charge. She had found herself devoted to the girl, adopting her inside her heart as one of her own. What caused this pain in Narcissa must be stopped as it caused much more in Ginny. Making her way to the top of the flight she turned down the hallway to the guest wing but a familiar 'pop' sounded behind her.

Lucius' voice echoed in the darkness. "Narcissa…"

------------------------------

Ginny looked at herself in the mirror, inspecting every inch of her reflection. Her hair had been dried with a simple spell and was twisted into a bun on the top of her head. Short fuzzy curls fell around her ears bringing her eye evenly to look at the redness in her corneas from the crying, the circles beneath her eyes, and the pronounced swelling on her cheek. Touching a finger to it, the pressure beneath the skin responding to the pressure of her touch accordingly, she hissed at the pain. Turning her head slightly she looked at her neck at the places that had reddened from Blaise grabbing at her.

The lines dragged her sight down to her collarbone which vanished behind the sweater Draco had grabbed for her. It was a dark forest green and was loose around her arms and waist, which right now was exactly what she wanted. She smiled as she thought of how 'coincidental' it had been that he had grabbed a green sweater when as she remembered she had packed one of her red ones on top. Her hands ran along the soft cotton of her pajama pants, navy and Capri style.

With one last look at her face, she turned and opened the door to the bedroom, her breath caught in her throat.

She saw Draco sitting on the floor lounging against the bed frame, flipping through a magazine. She watched him silently for a moment, vexed at what had come between them. Should she address the elephant in the room? That they had been destined to be enemies and now, after what had happened, she was going to be- what- spending the night in his room? No, she would abuse the reality that for now she and Draco had a pact and it was a nonverbal agreement that both would honor that at least until the following morning.

Stepping into the room she felt herself exhale as Draco looked up, eyebrows quirked and a smile on his face. "Feeling better?" He asked, setting the magazine to his side.

Ginny nodded and crossed her arms across her chest, looking around the room, the elephant stampeding her into the ground. Alright so where was she expected to sleep? She saw Draco tilt as if to get her attention and looked back to him. He patted the ground beside him and she crossed the space between them and sat cross-legged beside him.

"So I was thinking," Draco started, picking at the hems of his pants. "You should probably take the bed, its only right I mean, I'd be an ass if I had you sleeping on the floor." Ginny half snorted at the thought.

"Where would you sleep then, I mean, one of us would have to be in the bed… it wouldn't make sense if we _both_ slept on the floor…" Ginny trailed off.

"You answered your own question haven't you?"

"Yes." Ginny giggled and looked away, half embarrassed, half delighted that Draco was able to joke. "But I feel bad for making you sleep on the floor in your bedroom." She looked back to find him studying her which made her draw back slightly.

"Don't worry about me."

There was a moment of silence before Draco stood and fetched something from a sitting area in the corner opposite them by the window. Frowning in curiosity and confusion, Ginny watched as he hid whatever it was behind his back until he got to her and sat down in front of her, mimicking her sitting position. He brandished before her a chess set. Smiling, he set it up and smiling, she watched.

Sometime between then and the next morning she and Draco had shared minor details of each other and agreed to do this more often and gone to bed.


	8. Ch7: Magnetism

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Okay, some of you may say this chapter is a bit… odd, but I intended this to illustrate the growth in Draco and Ginny's friendship so it's meant to be a little here and there. Remember, not everything in life is fast paced and drama. Sometimes it's pillow-fights and chess!

**Author's Note: **Okay so I like this chapter and I hope you do to. Don't worry, I'm not going to forget Narcissa or Lucius or anyone.

_Chapter Seven: Magnetism_

"Are you hungry?" Ginny blinked as the sunlight flooded her eyelids with unwelcome vigor. Shifting under the weight of wakefulness she spread out her arms in a languid stretch and took in her surroundings. Silver and green. Everywhere.

Sitting up abruptly she realized that somewhere in time she had moved from her spot on the floor to Draco's bed. In the most unromantic of ways mind you. Her head throbbed lightly with lack of a full night's rest which she had become accustomed to and her body ached all along one side. Venturing into her memories of last night she began to find reason in all of these things.

Ginny and Draco had sat there for quite some time playing chess, talking about this or that. She had found out that Draco was actually a big fan of chess but wasn't blessed with the right company to play with. Crabbe and Goyle were far too stupid to indulge his more strategic side and Blaise was too concerned with hooking up with the various girls running around the house to spend much time with Draco outside of class. Frankly that didn't bother Draco so much, Ginny found out, since Blaise was an ass most of the time anyways, but Blaise was also someone Draco viewed closest to an equal over all others. Draco also informed Ginny that he had taken no pains in giving Blaise a few sound punches the night before.

Ginny on the other hand was raised in a house of chess. Ron was the closest in age to her so they spent quite some time together and one of their favorite past times together was playing chess. Percy used to play chess with her until he became head boy at Hogwarts and thought himself too important even though they weren't even at school when she asked him to play. Bill was originally her chess partner, teaching her to play when she was nine before going away on one of his trips. But of course he left and Ron swiftly took his place.

All this talk of her family made Ginny a bit depressed and she shed a few tears for her family, wondering if Ron was safe. She expressed her guilt of her not thinking of him as much as she should have. Draco insisted that it wasn't easy to forget Ron but then immediately apologized for being a dick.

At this point Ginny and Draco had been in a general story telling mood and pushed the chess board aside since they were no longer paying any mind to it, and divulged each other in painfully nostalgic stories to pass the time. It was mostly to cheer Ginny but in the end the two of them were laughing so hard that their sides were splitting.

Time had in fact gotten away from the two as they didn't realize that they had been talking for nearly three hours until the booming sound of the grandfather clock sounded during one of the rare silences in the conversation. Both had looked at each other in amazement that a Weasley and a Malfoy had actually carried on a conversation for so long.

In retrospect it was a signifier of how their friendship would continue, but for that night it was all chess and stories. Stories about how Ginny had followed her twin brothers down to the river by her house and they had wound up throwing her in and that's how she learned how to swim. At this Draco laughed but patted her forearm apologetically. They talked about how Draco had once fallen off of a horse during riding lessons because he had tried to get on it side-saddle and the horse had stepped on Draco's hand. That was his first medical bone-mending.

With those thoughts in mind, Ginny remembered now why she was laying in an entirely Slytherin bed wearing a slinky white tank top and navy Capri pajama pants looking at Draco as he waited for her reply.

"Starving, actually." She answered with a grin and rolled out of the bed hitting the floor feet first with a thud. Grabbing the green sweater from the foot of the bed, she thrust her arms through it and made her attire more appropriate for her immediate company. She thought for a moment. "What time is it? Are we late for breakfast? I have to get changed."

Draco waved his hands in the air and she noticed the letter in one of them. "I got a letter from mum, she says we won't be having breakfast with her so we're more than welcome to just have breakfast when we like and spend our weekend how we want." He reached for the bedside table and dropped and envelope into her hands. "That came for you this morning, I suspect it's the same thing."

Ginny opened it and read an identical message to Draco's. Just as she was about to put it down she saw words begin to appear before her eyes at the bottom of the letter.

_P.s._

_Ginny, I want to apologize for last night. Do not think I was unaware of the turmoil you were in. I must say though, without delving into detail, that I was unavoidably detained. For that I apologize to you and hope that whatever happened you are not worse for my lack of interruption. I will see you tonight hopefully and Monday should resume as usual. As a reminder, Ginny, you cannot tell anyone about our connection, if that knowledge is made public your safety in this house will be critically compromised. Please try to enjoy the duration of your day and I hope to see you tonight._

Ginny set the letter down and the ink vanished where it once was before Draco could know about the secret message. Regaining her composure, still pondering on what could have unavoidably detained Narcissa, Ginny accepted Draco's slippers and the two made their way to the dining room for breakfast.

That morning when Ginny walked into the dining room she was shocked. The large table meant for the formal regiment Narcissa had set up was gone and replaced by a small round table with just enough room for the two of them. "Did they know it would just be us?" She turned to Draco, eyebrows knit in wonder.

He shrugged and took a seat after pulling out a chair for Ginny. This display of chivalry was a far cry from the Draco she was familiar with, but that combined with last night, Ginny was surprisingly more than willing to wipe clean the slate of the past and replace what was once there with the writings of this new, human Draco.

"The house elves have eyes and ears in this whole house… quite frankly I'd rather not think about it or I'd never bathe in this house again but it does make things easier in a way."

Ginny giggled at Draco's comment and the food was brought out. Large fluffy waffles topped with strawberries and blackberries sat on decorative plates in front of Ginny and Draco. Their glasses filled with orange juice and the vase in the middle of the table filled with a bouquet of fresh wildflowers.

They ate their breakfast in friendly silence, talking ever-so-often about the topics of last night and chuckling at a new inside joke. After breakfast Draco escorted her back to her room, making sure she was alright with being alone after having it filled with bad memories. She was and was actually eager to go through her room and erase any evidence of the night before but when she walked into the room she saw that the house elves had beat her to it. The window was already repaired and the room looked as it did before she had left for the party, but cleaner of course.

Ginny contemplated bathing but found that she did harbor residual fears from the night before and didn't want to be naked in her room just yet. It wasn't that she thought Blaise would burst in at any moment; she just didn't want to be in the location of such an emotional whirlwind and be physically vulnerable like that as well. Instead, she lay on her bed and thought about what all had transpired between her and Draco in the past twelve hours.

The two had gone into the dance as merely housemates, two people living in the same house sharing an area code and not much else. After the dance she was sure that Draco was just being a jerk about Blaise liking someone 'beneath' him. But after the fact that Draco seemed willing to cross the lines of his and Blaise's friendship to protect her, she had been confused about where she stood in the book Draco Malfoy. As the night showed, there were changes in Draco, and it could have been the situations he was in that made him act the way he did in the past, but something happened to turn him into someone totally different, someone Ginny could call a friend.

---------------------------

Ginny's footsteps echoed down the hallway with a sense of urgency resounding with each tap of her heels. As she rounded the corner, she slowed her pace to accommodate the staircase and once at the bottom she was off once more, rounding the banister and rushing to the ballroom, she let out a gasp of air as she broke through the entry into the grand room. Inside the echoes were stronger as she made her way to the center of the room where Draco stood waiting. "I am so sorry…" She trailed off, hand on her chest as she tried to catch her breath. "I fell asleep and completely lost track of time."

Draco watched her with eyes as mere slits and Ginny panicked, jumping to the conclusion that their friendship had quickly dissolved and now they were back on bad terms. "That's alright," He began and Ginny nearly fell flat on her face in relief. "I nearly thought you were going to kill yourself in those heels, though." He added, nodding to her stilettos.

Flashing a sideways grin, Ginny tried not to mention her throbbing toes and slipped off her jacket, setting it on a nearby chair. Turning she saw Draco staring at her. Blushing she crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked around, avoiding eye contact. "So… What are we doing today?"

Draco blinked and motioned for her to come closer to him. "You know, you can wear something less…" He trailed off, moving his hand up and down in front of her outfit. She rolled her eyes.

"For your information this is the most casual outfit I've worn since I've been here if I remember right!" She snapped in return, hands on her hips. She was in fact, dressed casually for the standards of Malfoy manor. She was wearing a simple bright green baby doll top with a thick black belt tied around her waist and tight black jeans that hugged every curve.

"Whatever." Draco waved his hands in the air in surrender and then let them fall in place one on her hip and her hand in his other. "Today we will be doing the traditional Muggle version of the Waltz."

"A Muggle dance? You continue to surprise! And wasn't this the dance where you had two left feet?" Ginny teased and Draco slapped her side playfully.

"Don't be a smart-alec it makes for bad company." He smirked as Ginny scoffed. She thought how funny it was he seemed to have not heard her comment about his having two left feet.

"You're one to talk." She shook her hair off of her shoulders and straightened her posture.

"Yes," Draco began, reaching for his wand and flicking it to turn on the music. "But I am a cynical Slytherin and therefore loathe every fiber of everyone's being except my own and must use sarcasm to make light of my own situation."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Correction, Mr. Malfoy, you were a Slytherin." As the music began neither moved as the weight of her words sank in. Hogwarts was no more. They were no longer Slytherin and Gryffindor but merely Draco and Ginny. More so, they were no longer children. They had a terrible fate thrust upon them and they had to deal with it. Already their lives had been compromised in this war and for what?

Ginny's mind pondered the answers to these questions, she wondered whether Draco thought of it too. Instead of seeing much of an answer in his eyes or his expression he quickly jostled her until her posture had been regained and began instructing her in the movements. "What are we practicing this for anyways? Can't we take it slow, isn't our next dance in December?" Ginny asked, her toes squishing into the pointed torture device that was her shoe.

Draco halted and blinked at her. "No! Our next dance is at the end of the month. All Hallows Eve, remember?" Ginny looked aghast. Draco chuckled. "You thought we wouldn't do two balls in the same month? Preposterous! We are Malfoy's and we must dance!"

Ginny almost collapsed with the weight of her future exhaustion on her shoulders. "Oh gods…"

----------------------

Draco kicked a small pebble that rested in his path. It skipped across the uneven stone walkway until it rolled to a halt about twenty feet away. He looked to his left where the red-headed enigma that had invaded his house was trying her best to keep balance on the edge of the fountain in the Malfoy gardens. Nearly slipping and breaking her ankle, she caught herself and snapped her attention to him, smiling in embarrassment and resuming her high-heeled tight-rope around the circle.

He was amazed by her, vexed and utterly confused, but amazed. She had become a new person to him entirely after what had happened the night before. Bursting through her window to see Blaise about to… he didn't want to think about it. But seeing her react to him like it was her fault to be put in that situation was depressing. Ginny, someone who had done nothing wrong but incur the wrath of an asshole was trying to remain solitary. He frowned, he was sure it was because she thought he would make fun of her. He wouldn't though, he knew she was strong.

He had always known that Ginny was a strong girl. No matter what he and his posse were able to dish out she always took it and threw something of equal magnitude right back. He never thought of her as unintelligent, especially since he had been chided by Snape one too many a time about how a certain redheaded Gryffindor was performing at higher levels than he even though she was a year younger. It hadn't taken him long to figure out who it was.

And he had never thought that she was unattractive either. When she had shown up earlier in the ballroom he almost felt his stomach knot at the sight of her. This was odd because he wasn't really attracted to Gryffindors, but as Ginny had pointed out at the beginning of their lesson, there was no such thing as Gryffindor anymore.

He was shocked by this statement especially that it had come from her. He would have expected her to shout about Potter being able to win the war and Hogwarts being reopened and everything returning back to normal like it was supposed to be, but she didn't. In fact after the lesson, before they decided to come outside, they had talked briefly about how it may very well happen that the aurors and such will lose the war and anyone who ever stood for Dumbledore would die.

Ginny cried again and he did his best to console her. All of her friends were fighting if they could and he suspected that more than anything she wanted to be a part of that. Instead she was a prisoner in Malfoy manor. She might as well ask to meet Voldemort over dinner and discuss politics.

She rounded the fountain and arms straight out, eyes focused on the stone rim; she seemed the glow when she came so the sun was behind her. What was it about her that made him so weird inside? He had to admit it to himself that maybe he had developed a bit of a crush on the beautiful redhead, but it wasn't as if he was the first. He had overheard conversations in class at Hogwarts (before all of this happened of course) about how she was noticed for her appearance.

Now as a matter of fact she looked rather striking. Her red hair was in curls and pulled away from her face yet still free to fall around her shoulders and compliment the deep green of her shirt. The green also played well with her fair skin which Draco noticed was smooth and dotted lightly with freckles. The belt that she absurdly wore over her shirt as opposed to through the belt loops of her trousers (which were too small to support a belt of that width anyways) did support the function of displaying her thin waist and curvy figure. Her pants only bade him to rest his eyes over the shaking of her…

He coughed and looked away. He wasn't going to leer like a pervert no matter how much he really wanted to. Despite what everyone may have thought Draco Malfoy was first and foremost a gentleman. Ginny stumbled and nearly fell into the water. Draco stole a glance at her rump.

Alright, he tried really hard to be first and foremost a gentleman.

------------------

That night Narcissa wasn't able to join them for dinner so they sat at their small round table. Instead of a bouquet of flowers like there was for breakfast the centerpiece was a candelabra that had been decorated with strings of dangling crystals. Ginny pulled her chair up to the table and straightened out her dress.

"You look nice tonight." Draco commented, shocking Ginny. She had expected civil conversation, friendly references to their previous discussions, but not compliments. Smiling proudly, knowing full well that yes, she did look wonderful, she folded her hands in her lap.

"Well thank you Mister Malfoy, you don't look too shabby yourself."

Draco scoffed. "Malfoy and shabby are two words that should never be used in the same sentence together, regardless of using them as antonyms."

Ginny rolled her eyes at his primness. "What a ham…" She muttered and took the napkin from her plate and set it in her lap.

Draco, although he seemed rather uninterested in what was going on, he was quite attuned to what Ginny was doing. For some reason, ever since the incident with Blaise, Draco had been more aware of the young Weasley. He had always persuaded himself that she was not as beautiful as she seemed, it was just a trick of the mind, she was a Weasley anyways and whether or not she was pleasant to look at it was forbidden.

But now, was she really a Weasley? Or was she a Malfoy? Watching her play with her food, forming shapes on her plate with her potatoes, he knew she wasn't a Malfoy. There was something about her that didn't agree with the Malfoy lifestyle. She may have been able to pull off playing the rules and making lessons on time, dancing for the audiences and playing puppet like all the young socialites did, but she lacked the Malfoy qualities that made a Malfoy a Malfoy. She wasn't particularly cunning, or rather, if she was she wasn't manipulative about it.

Ginny looked up from her faux Eiffel Tower ala potato to see Draco looking intently into his water goblet. Raising an eyebrow she shook her head and took a bite of the pork. It was warm and tender and she liked it, but it wasn't what she really wanted. What she had wanted for the past few months that she had taken residence at Malfoy Manor had been her mother's famous stew. She hadn't had stew in ages.

Sighing she sipped at her water. "Everything alright?" Draco asked. Forcing a smile, she nodded.

"Yes, I'm just thinking about home. I love it here, and I'm grateful for everything, but I've never been out of contact with my family for so long. I mean, the letter I get once a month is nice. Mum always says the usual things, that everyone's alive and with all of their body parts and that Harry and Hermione are fine, that they're fighting the good fight and I've nothing to worry about. But I always feel like she's leaving something out, and I just miss her so much." Ginny smiled. "You know, she's the one I complain about so much to all of my friends and here I am missing her and my pigheaded nosy brother more than anyone."

Draco hummed sympathetically. "You're lucky." He said almost as a whisper.

Frowning, Ginny titled her head in question.

Draco flashed a lopsided grin. "Every time I left for Hogwarts I was always seen off the same way. Mum and father would go to the train station with me. Father would give me some lecture about the Malfoy code and making him proud that year and such. Then he would pat my shoulder and leave so mum could say her goodbyes. She'd always tell me how proud she was of me, give me some sort of present and then hug me and talk about manners and being good."

Ginny couldn't picture this Narcissa matching up with the one that she had gotten to know, but in a way it didn't surprise her much either. Narcissa didn't come off quite as she had supposed she would. She was strong and set in her thoughts and ideas, she was stubborn but she was witty. She was kind and had a sense of humor that showed every once in a while. And although she never mentioned it much, she had talked about Draco and every time she did Ginny could see a twinkle in Narcissa's eyes. No matter how aware she was of her son's shortcomings, Narcissa loved Draco more than anything.

Draco continued. "Anyways, it sounds all well and good but for some reason the second I got on that train I was so relieved to be away from them. The entire time I was at school I was counting the days until I returned home like a countdown to time in Azkaban." Ginny silently gasped. How could Draco possibly compare living with his parents with the horrors of Azkaban? Granted Ginny had never been there, she had heard the scary things that happened there. Prisoners would go insane with living there. From what she had experienced, Lucius was barely home and Narcissa was either tending to her social duties or teaching Ginny. How could it be hard for Draco to live here?

Well, Ginny thought, it wasn't as if she knew everything about living in Malfoy Manor. She didn't know what life was like when Lucius was home. There had been rumors up at school about Narcissa being a battered wife and Draco a beaten son. Neither Narcissa nor Draco appeared to be suffering the side affects of an abusive life and the rumors remained just as such, rumors.

"Like I said," Draco's voice shook Ginny awake from her thoughts. "You're lucky." He seemed so solemn, sitting there contemplating his family. Ginny felt guilty, as if she were spying on a moment that wasn't hers to see. "You're lucky that you have a family you can miss."

-----------------------------------------

Ginny laughed as Draco steadied himself against the wall. Apparently she wasn't the only one prone to tripping on rugs. "Now you know how it feels!" She cackled as karma made a full circle right before her eyes. Draco swatted at her and they made their way down the hallway to her room. She had in a roundabout sort of way hinted that she was uncomfortable bathing in her room alone and Draco bluntly addressed it and promised to flip through a magazine in her room while she bathed. Bathroom door closed of course.

As they stepped down the long hallway to Ginny's door there was a comfortable silence between the two, as if they had been friends forever. They had been acquaintances of sorts (enemies) since her first year. That was now almost six and half years. During that time they had gotten used to each other, even though it was originally just to be able to be in the same castle. Now it seemed whatever they had picked up was aiding in the building of their friendship now.

Draco knew not to make snide remarks about Ginny liking Potter back in the day or Hermione having hair like a bush and Ginny was well aware of the fact that comparing Draco to Crabbe or Goyle was a no-no, as was doubting his manners.

Draco watched as Ginny subconsciously shimmied from side to side. That was something he was grateful of, women wearing heels. It made their bum look so much better than it would normally even though if memory served, normally didn't look terrible either. The dress she was wearing that night didn't help matters either. For some reason the house elves had deemed it fit to fashion the lovely Miss Weasley in a formfitting grey knee length dress that had this neckline as if someone had cut a huge V out of it. This went well since her cleavage showed ever so slightly when she would reach across the table to get the salt.

The fabric was shiny like her hair and the skirt flared out at her knees, tempting the wind to gust through the house and stir up all of those layers. Draco grinned at his thoughts and sighed contentedly to himself as Ginny continued to be unaware of his searching eyes.

----------------------------------

They finally reached her door and with a swift turn she turned the knob. Draco was soon poised on her bed, feet crossed as he ran his fingers across his neck, massaging out a cramp that had been building there and staring at his toes. Ginny on the other hand was splashing around in the shower, grabbing the assorted bottles for her hair, body, face, etc. Once she was done covering her body with assorted fragranced goos, she washed off and used a quick drying spell on herself.

She pulled on her clothes, a pair of low rise jeans and a sweater, and opened the door to her bedroom. Behind her billows of steam raced for her bedroom where the air was cooler. Draco looked up from the interesting dialogue he was having in his head about his shoes and smiled. "Feeling up to a game of chess?" He held up the set he had grabbed on the way to her room.

Clapping her hands together happily, Ginny nodded. "Most definitely."

They set up the board on the ground at the foot of her bed and she grabbed a few pillows so they could sit or lay comfortably on the hardwood floor. Draco threw his wand into the air and the room lit up by means of the lamps scattered on the various tabletops. Tossing one of the pillows to him, she managed to hit directly in the back of his head. Snorting and falling into a giggling fit, Ginny was startled when a goose feather filled pouch hit her square in the stomach.

Letting out a gasp for air she blinked to regain composure, then let out an attack upon Draco's poor head. Draco in turn did a job of returning the hits he was receiving, finally throwing Ginny down and straddling her. With her movements restricted he grabbed both of her wrists and pinned them easily above her head and with a gentle tap of his pillow against her cheek he smiled proudly. "I win."

"Not quite!" Ginny threw her hips up, throwing Draco both off balance and onto the floor. Now Ginny grabbed up her pillow imitated Draco's prior position, mimicking his actions. Smirking she threw her pillow aside, stood and skipping around the room began to chant "I am the champ-ion! I am the champ-ion! Draco is the looo-ser cause I am the champ-ion! NYEAH!" She stuck her tongue out at the boy who had yet to move from the floor.

"Oh that's mature." He muttered, pushing himself up onto his elbows.

"You're just sore cause I won." Ginny pointedly remarked, hands on her hips in defiant victory.

"Psshht…" Draco shook his head. "I let you win. Besides, you're just trying to win cause I beat you in chess last night."

"Did not!"

"Did to."

"Did not!" Ginny crossed the space between him and shoved him, a smile of disbelief on her features. Clearly the reason why Draco had no one to play with was because he didn't know how to score the game. Checkmate usually meant someone had lost, not won. Draco, stubborn in his ways, pulled her so she fell against the bed beside him.

"Oho, Weasley, you are sorely mistaken. As I remember you lost quite a bit and that is why you rushed to bed in a huff." Draco teased as he turned and placed his hands on either side of Ginny so he was looking her straight in the eyes, very little room between them. It was then that the two began to realize what positions they had been throwing themselves in. With Draco's lips less than a foot away from Ginny's, if someone were to burst through the door at that exact second, well, it wouldn't look the way it actually was.

Draco stepped back slowly, recognizing the need for distance between them, and Ginny exhaled silently. For a moment they were thankful for the silence that fell between them, the need for words absent until words could be found to soothe their furiously beating hearts.

Draco cleared his throat and made his way to the pillows on the floor. "Not that any of that is important with the hope of a new game in front of us…" He trailed off, motioning to the chess board in front of him. Ginny nodded quickly and as an afterthought flashed a smile, sitting down across from him.

Together they played a round in complete silence until the awkwardness between them had begun to vanish. Finally they began exchanging jokes and snide comments about one another and silently they agreed to forget any of the moments that had previously passed between them ever happened. "Come _on_ Draco it's not like I had meant it, you were being a complete ass! What was I supposed to do?"

"Not bat-bogey hex me!"

Ginny couldn't help but laugh at Draco's look of pain; she figured he must be remembering the stinging sensation that had quelled through his body as tiny stingers attacked him. Ginny pitied him after it had happened, she hadn't really meant for him to swell up the way he did, it just sort of happened that way. Her laughter faded as Draco continued to brood. "Draco, what's wrong?" Ginny frowned and laid a hand on Draco's.

Draco shrugged it off and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "No one teases a Malfoy." He insisted with a huff.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Don't tell me you're offended."

"And if I am?" Draco smirked.

Ginny tilted her head to the side and lifted an eyebrow. "Then it would be another side of human Draco that I had yet to see." Ginny smiled and Draco for some reason felt his stomach flip.


	9. Ch8: Closer

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** The return of Narcissa!!! I bring you answers! Also, at the end of the chapter it kind of switches points of view abruptly but I trust you to figure out what's going you… all my readers are GENIUSES!

**Author's Note: ** Well, my lucky readers… You get TWO WHOLE CHAPTERS earlier than usual! Aren't you all just the LUCKIEST readers in the whole entire world that have the love of their author-lady? Want to know how to repay her? That's right kiddies… Reviews.

_Chapter Eight: Closer_

--------------------------------

_Red-_

_We still on for our game of chess?_

_Draco_

_------------------------------_

_Draco-_

_Why do you insist on calling me all of those strange nicknames? Yes, we're on for chess._

_Ginny_

_p.s._

_I AM sitting right here, you don't have to write a note…_

_----------------------------------_

_Princess Wheezy-Weasley-Weasel-_

_Good, chess is nice. I like the nicknames, I'm just trying a few out._

_Draco_

_p.s._

_I know, but I like writing, it's so Renaissance…_

_----------------------------------_

_Prince Friggity Ferret-_

_I'd appreciate if you were going to choose nicknames to choose one that made more sense for me… Something like: Ginny Queen of the rubies. _

_Ginny_

_p.s._

_You're a freak._

_--------------------------------_

_Ginny the frog master-_

"FROG MASTER?" Ginny choked, blanching at the note. Draco rolled his eyes and sighed.

"You're defeating the purpose of the note!" He pointed to the paper and Ginny, scowling, continued.

_Ginny the frog master-_

_Stop picking toads._

_Draco_

_p.s._

_Want to test that theory?_

_--------------------------------_

Ginny crumpled up the paper and threw it to Draco, aiming precisely for his forehead and hitting her mark.

"Well that was childish." He scoffed and discarded the paper as if it were a dirty napkin.

Ginny smirked. "You're one to talk you pervert."

Draco raised his eyebrows, innocent smile plastered on his face. Ginny could read through its falseness. "Pervert? Now how did you draw that conclusion?"

Ginny sighed. "Want to test that theory? Oh yeah, that was an innocent comment."

Draco stuck out his tongue at her. "Don't get so full of yourself Queen Ginny of the red peppers." Draco teased.

Ginny stuck her tongue out in reply they broke into an all out pinching war. All memories of any awkward moments disappeared as they proceeded to place themselves in other interesting positions; Ginny had somehow wound up bent over the nearest couch where Draco seized the opportunity to pinch the back of her thigh, Ginny's head also found it's way nearly in Draco's lap to pinch the skin behind his knee cap. It wasn't until Ernest happened upon them to give them both notes from Narcissa that they stopped.

Ginny lifted the flap of the envelope containing her letter and pulled out one of Narcissa's beautifully penned messages.

_Ginevra,_

_Pack your things, we will be departing to visit a friend of mind in the states by early tomorrow morning. You and I will have lessons before then after lunch and dinner tonight will be early to allow for ample time to get your things together. See you then._

_-Narcissa_

Ginny blinked and looked over at Draco who was trying his best to hide a smile. _What a crime,_ she thought, _his smile is gorgeous when he lets himself show it._

"She's talking about Lee." Draco explained. "He lives in New York in a flat. He's pretty nice, tells terrible jokes and thinks he's rather funny, but you'll like him. Mum goes to him when…" He trailed off and cleared his throat. "Either way, I better get going to start packing. You'd better do the same. I'll see you at lunch." With a wave he left her sitting on the floor with chess pieces scattered all over the place.

"What a freak." She muttered, straightening out the chess set he had left in her room and standing. With a sigh she decided it best to use this time to start packing. The problem was that she wasn't entirely sure what TO pack. Just when she was sure she'd be spending most of her time pulling her hair out, a knock at the door came. Cocking her head, a couple of sweaters in her hands, she walked over to the door and opened it.

Draco stood before her looking slightly shiny and out of breath. "The elves already packed my things, I figured you may need some help since you've never been before." Ginny nodded and let him in.

Closing the door behind her reoccurring guest, Ginny smiled to herself. Draco was such a freak.

-----------------------------------

Ginny sat on her trunk as she watched Draco fly through her wardrobe pulling out dresses and tops and pants and shoes. She almost wondered why he knew so much about what was considered fashionable for a girl to wear when in America, but this thought was trumped when she thought back to his arrival to her room. Why had he looked sweaty? Why had he clearly been running? She frowned, pulling at a cuticle.

"Don't do that." Ginny's head shot up to find Draco standing before her holding two jackets. "Which of the jackets do you like better?" He asked, holding up the two choices. She raised an eyebrow.

"You're the expert, you tell me." She shrugged.

Just as Draco frowned at her, exhausted about running through her wardrobe for the past hour and a half, a knock at her door came. Both looked over as Narcissa stepped in. "Draco," She said with some surprise. "I figured you'd be out with the thestrals."

"No," Draco replied. Ginny was scared she'd get in trouble for having a boy in her room with the door closed. Her mother would've flipped her lid. "I was helping Ginny work through what to pack, she didn't know what to bring." He paused. "What jacket should she take?" He held them both up.

Ginny watched in mild confusion as Narcissa stepped forward and inspected both of the clothing items. How could Narcissa treat this situation like she was? No, Ginny and Draco hadn't been doing anything to warrant a strict talking to but certainly she would have a problem with Draco being here in her room. Narcissa didn't seem to mind though. Ginny assumed that because her new friendship with Draco only occurred over the past couple of days when Narcissa wasn't around, Narcissa didn't know the two were even on civil speaking terms.

Ginny ventured to think that Narcissa was surprised Draco was there because he was holding jackets in his hands and not trying to strangle Ginny to death.

_Well,_ Ginny smirked, _it's more appropriate to say vice versa…_ She almost giggled except Narcissa let out a sigh. "Pack them both, there's plenty of room." Draco nodded and laid them both on the pile of clothes he'd already collected.

"I'll call the house elves to pack all of this up. I'll see you at lunch, mum." He placed a kiss on her cheek. Nodding a goodbye to Ginny he left.

Ginny watched him leave and turned to Narcissa who was watching her with a raised eyebrow, the patented Narcissa expression. "Well, that's a friendship I would've pinned as unlikely but I see I must take my own advice." Narcissa alluded to the conversation she and Ginny had had at the French restaurant.

Or was it at the French restaurant? Ginny tried to remember that far back. Lost in her thoughts she marveled at how long she had actually been here at Malfoy Manor. Originally she hadn't even thought she'd last this long, now she was finally feeling settled with exception of Lucius and the incident with Blaise. She and Draco were getting along just fine, she and Narcissa had nothing between them; in fact Ginny found talking to Narcissa about extremely off topic things like Harry or her brother or Luna extremely therapeutic. She supposed it was nice for Narcissa to have someone she could think of as a daughter.

After a while Ginny heard Narcissa inhale and speak. "I had come to talk about the night of the ball."

"Well," Ginny wondered if she should tell Narcissa about the incident with Blaise, but felt that if she didn't she'd be remiss. "You see, that night… of the dance…" She looked down at the floor, embarrassed that she had let something like that happen to her. She shouldn't have been so vulnerable. She supposed that was why most people in high society seemed distant.

"You don't have to tell me now, I'll be there when you want me to listen." Narcissa smiled kindly, sitting next to Ginny on the trunk.

Ginny nodded. "I guess it's harder to talk about than I would've thought." Ginny looked down at her hands. "It was Blaise he…" She trailed off, not knowing exactly how to word it.

"It's alright, just say how you feel." Narcissa encouraged. Why was she making it so easy for Ginny to tell her everything? Shouldn't there be some secrets between them? Like Ginny had with her own mum? It wasn't right that she could feel so open to telling Narcissa just about everything and she couldn't even tell her own mum when she and Seamus had first kissed! Frustrated but needing the reprieve of Narcissa's words, she forced her mouth to move.

"That night, Blaise, he tried to force himself on me. We had been talking for a while, he was all charming and whatnot and I fell for it like a bumbling fool. Draco even tried to warn me in his Draco kind of way, telling me to just stay away from him but I didn't listen- I thought he was just being a prat. So I go to the dance with Blaise and these girls come up and tease me and all of a sudden Blaise is boxing me around my own room trying to rip my dress off!" Ginny didn't know when the tears behind her eyes started to slide down her cheeks but she felt a single drop fall on her wrist.

Rubbing it away she sniffled. "Luckily Draco could hear my screams and rescued me. That's why we're friends now… I guess because of what all happened he felt like he could open up to me, or felt that he should so that I wouldn't be the only one vulnerable that night. We wound up playing chess and talking most of the night." Ginny hadn't meant to turn the conversation into her and Draco but that just happened to be the way the conversation turned.

Ginny looked over to find Narcissa looking positively ghostly. Her skin had grown paler than normal and her eyes were wide with sorrow. "Ginny, I'm so sorry, if I could've done something I would've." Ginny nodded.

"What were you busy with, if it's not too forward of me to ask?"

Narcissa smiled almost bitterly and Ginny immediately knew it had something to do with Lucius. "Maybe some day you'll know but there are much more pleasant things to be our topic than that." Ginny nodded, knowing that conversation would come when Narcissa wanted it to.

----------------------------

Lunch passed pleasantly, the three of them sharing jokes and stories of times in America. Ginny was absolutely elated that she would have the opportunity to go, she hadn't been in a while. She used to go every year with her family to visit a friend of her parents but from her fifth year on they hadn't been. Once lunch ended and Draco left to tend to some of his business before the end of the night, Narcissa called Ginny down to her study. Ginny walked inside the familiar room and sat in the couch that she seemed to have claimed as her own.

Narcissa sat in her usual place behind the desk and pulled out a rolled up piece of parchment. "Since times seem to be settling down some, the attacks lessening and such, Minerva and I thought it would be safe for you and your parents to start exchanging letters again through a secret system." Holding out the parchment she delighted in the way Ginny's eyes widened.

"This is from my parents?" It had been longer than usual since they had written and Ginny had begun to get worried. She held out her hand, taking the parchment as if she squeezed it too tight it would crumble like ashes.

"Yes, and you can write one in return. I'll have it delivered and though it may take some time to make sure it's delivered safely, you'll get one back."

Ginny nearly squealed. Ripping the tie off of the parchment and letting it unravel she saw her mother's familiar scrawl. Ginny didn't notice Narcissa leave but at the moment she didn't notice anything but that letter.

_Ginny_

_Oh we've missed you so much! I don't know where to start but I've got to say before I get off track that your father and I have moved elsewhere for the time being, you know, precautions and such, so Narcissa has to deliver this letter._

_Father's been working less now, he and I have dinners and breakfasts together before he goes into work and when he comes home. It's nice but it's not the same without a full roost. Ron has written a couple of times; he, Harry, and Hermione are just fine. Everyone in the Order wishes you the best, they think you've gone to live with a cousin that doesn't exist and we can't tell them where you are. I expect though that Ron's done a good job of telling Harry and Hermione, Hermione almost asked if you had met Lucius yet the other day._

_Oh yes, Ron and Hermione seem to be a bit of a couple these days, always hanging around each other. I looked out the window the other day to find them holding hands and walking along as if I weren't there. Harry's still single of course but just as well, you've only been gone a few months._

_Fred and George did a right good job of almost killing me the other day, sneaking up on me when I was napping on the couch. I hadn't seen them in so long, Fred looks ill but George distracted me from asking Fred anything about it. George has a girlfriend as well. I don't know her name, I hope she's real, the twins should really start dating or the only person they'll have at the end will be the other twin._

_Haven't heard from Percy but father says he's fine. Bill and Fleur have moved again but Fleur has gone into hiding with the baby (a beautiful baby girl! When you come home I'll show you the pictures, they're to die for!) Charlie's still fighting the good fight, he's in Austria now._

_Ginny I wish you could've stayed but I see now that Ron was right. When we had to move father and I barely found a one bedroom for ourselves. We share a bathroom with another couple and they're pleasant but a bit strange. I know you're in the best place possible. Minerva says she may come to visit you sometime soon. Please write back as soon as possible, I'd love to see your handwriting again and know how things are going._

_Lots of love Gins,_

_Mum and Dad_

_P.s. _

_Ginny it's your father, your mother hogged the whole letter but I wanted to write myself that I miss y pumpkin very much and I hope you're doing well. Tell me if you find any Muggle items at the Malfoy's place, it'll make me feel better! Be good and no dating!_

_Dad_

Ginny held the paper to her chest and sobbed as she thought of all that she had missed. She had forgotten that Fleur was expecting. Ginny had missed the birth and everything! Fred may have been sick and she missed Ron so much. If only she could see them again, she'd give nearly all of her new clothes to just hug her mum and dad for a few seconds.

A knock sounded at the opening of the room and she jumped. Turning she saw Draco leaning up against the wall. " I didn't want to interrupt, is that a letter from your parents?" He nodded to the parchment that she had rightly crinkled. Sniffling she held it out for him to see. Crossing the room he sat down beside her and took a look at the parchment before immediately looking back at Ginny.

She watched as his hand moved to her cheek and felt a cool droplet be crushed beneath his thumb and smoothed away. Smiling he proceeded to read the letter. Good thing too, Ginny blushed after a few seconds, realizing that he had caused her stomach to fill with dancing butterflies.

As Draco's eyes moved across the letter Ginny wondered what he would think of it. She had given him the letter without second thought to read but now realized that this was Draco Malfoy. They were friends now and her parents hadn't said anything about him but it felt odd to think that she had so willingly let him into this private moment in her life.

Draco finished the letter and laughed. "Still trying to screen your men from a distance, I see." He handed the parchment back to her gingerly. Taking it she rolled it up and returned the tie to its place, preserving the words that had brought her so much hope.

"They never knew about any of the guys I dated except for Harry, they were surprised when I brought one of them up casually one day and mum nearly thrashed me over the head with a teapot trying to beat information out of me." Ginny giggled at the memory. "They're protective but I've missed it now, I never realized how much I would've."

"You're lucky." Draco patted her knee and leaned back on the couch. She watched him with curiosity. "What?" He asked, eyebrows knitting and head tilting in reservation.

"Nothing," Ginny smiled and shook her head. "I just think you're luckier than you think."

Draco looked at her for a moment before frowning. "I don't know about that." This time Ginny frowned, pinching Draco in the side. "Hey! What was that for?" He shouted in protest.

Ginny laughed and threw her feet across his lap. "I think you're blind. You live in this beautiful house, you've got almost anything you could want, your mother loves the snotty brat out of you, and your father's barely even home. If I were you I think I'd be in love with my life but you seem to hate every waking moment of it."

Draco threw her legs off his lap, standing so quickly he nearly knocked her to the floor. Face red in anger, fists clenched and teeth to clenched the point of shattering, Draco actually looked like he was about to hex Ginny to death. "You don't know anything! All you ever do is sit around thinking you're the victim of relocation, missing your stupid red-headed family that misses you thinking that everyone must have it as good as you but they don't!

"What you don't know is regardless of when Lucius is here or not my life is miserable, I never get a reprieve from him because he's owling me all of my mistakes or how I need to become a servant of the Dark Lord and all my mother does is have the shit beat out of her by my bastard of a father and you think I live a golden life? Wake up, Weasley!! What happened to you with Blaise happens to my dear old mother every week! And guess whose left picking up the pieces of her shattered pride? ME! So don't you _ever_ insinuate that you know what my life is like again!"

With that he was gone and Ginny felt sick to her stomach.

----------------------------------

The night proved tense when at the dinner table Narcissa made a comment about how Ginny and Draco were rather quiet for friends. Draco quickly cleared the situation stating he had a pounding headache and wouldn't talk to Merlin himself if he were standing right in the room. He was excused from the meal and Ginny was for once able to keep a secret from Narcissa.

Ginny couldn't dare tell her what Draco had told Ginny earlier. The fact that he had mentioned the entire Blaise fiasco and told Ginny that Narcissa went through the same thing (on a frequent basis no less) made her finally understand why it was that Draco avoided home like the plague, why even his own mother could be his worst enemy; a constant reminder of the pain he would go through.

Moreover, Ginny would bet money on that being the reason Narcissa had been 'detained' that night, and like Draco had nearly spilled the beans on earlier, the reason why they were going to America.

Ginny was hoping that this trip would prove to bring her and Draco together but it seemed destined to separate them even further. With a heavy sigh she had gone up to her room and spent the majority of the night kicking pieces of chess around and muttering to herself. Huffing, she finally had gotten so completely bored out of her mind that she went to the garden to wonder how she ever lived in this house alone to begin with.

Yes, she felt terrible for assuming that Draco had a gilded life but he didn't need to avoid her like he was doing. After dinner they saw each other in the library and he threw the books in his bag and stalked by her, not letting her get a word in.

Hearing the lock of the ballroom door click she smiled, she was thinking so much she hadn't even realized she'd made her way to the garden in such a short amount of time. As the door pushed open a gust of wind blew her hair back from her shoulders and brushed gooseflesh across her arms. Shivering and smiling at the same time, she stepped into the courtyard and the door shut behind her.

Her feet were bare and the stones beneath her were cool and soft against her skin. The wind around her was soothing her heated skin. Inside the house it had been almost unbearably hot and the difference the outside made was amazing. Her head felt like it was beginning to clear and she was finally able to think about the day's events. She had written her family back and explained what had happened since they had been in contact last and after her altercation with Draco she had unpacked and repacked all of her things.

She found herself in front of the fountain that she had so frequently retreated to during her time at Malfoy Manor. Smiling she settled herself on the rim of the fountain and turned so she could look into the water. Dragging a fingertip across the cool water she saw a shadow wander across the ripples. Looking across the expanse of water and stone she saw Draco trudging along a path opposite from the one she had come.

Feeling her heart race, she stayed quiet, hoping he wouldn't notice her there. She didn't stop to wonder why she had this fear but instead acted on it. Her plan didn't work and she and Draco wound up staring each other down in the middle of the courtyard. He turned to walk away but Ginny's mouth opened before her brain had a chance to catch wind of what was going on.

"Draco wait!" She finally realized her hand was outstretched to him.

Draco glared at her and she withdrew into herself "I…" She began, feeling her stomach plummet at the cold gaze he held. "I'm sorry. I know I was wrong, I assumed that your life was all perfect and I was wrong. I'm sorry about that. But…" She paused, faltering in her courage. "But you didn't need to yell! I felt bad enough hearing all that stuff as it was I didn't need you to be all mad about it!"

She frowned and "Our friendship was really fragile and I didn't want to screw anything up and I did… I know it can be hard having a misleading life and I'm sorry because I fell for it with you." She glanced up and he was looking at her curiously.

There were a few moments before he spoke. "I can't believe you're trying to compare your life to mine. I may not know about your life but I sure as hell bet nothing in it compares to mine." His voice cut her like a knife.

"I wasn't saying my life was comparable to yours I was just saying that I know what it feels like to have someone think your life is all great when it's not. And no, you don't know about my life and just because it's not as bad as yours doesn't mean it's not bad. For Merlin's sake I had to get pulled from my house, which wasn't safe, to live in the house with the man that almost killed me my first year, or did that happen to slip your mind? Or how about the fact that nearly everyone I care about is fighting this stupid war and dying all over the place! No, my life isn't terrible but dammit it's not all that great and I've had people tell me all my life to get over whatever it is I have and be thankful for what I've got and I said the same thing to you today and I meant it but not the way it came out!"

She didn't even comprehend what it was that she had just said and by the look on Draco's face he didn't have the faintest clue either. "Never mind, forget what I said. I'm sorry about what I said alright and you can either forgive me or not, it's up to you." Standing abruptly she pushed past him and headed for the door. She didn't feel his fingers wrap around her wrist until her body jerked backwards and she was face to face with him.

"I forgive you alright, you just pissed me off a lot cause I've heard that my whole life. I know you aren't going through the best of times either and no I don't want our friendship to go down the shitter and I can't believe I said all that to a Weasley but there, I did it."

Ginny pulled back, frowning in stubbornness. "Don't act like it was taking nasty medicine Draco, being friends with a Weasley isn't like being friends with a troll."

"To you." He teased and she pinched him. "Ouch! Dammit Ginny that hurts! You play too rough."

Ginny cackled and began and onslaught of pinching, running away and taking solace on the edge of the fountain. "Do you hear that? The wind is whining…" She pantomimed listening intently to the wind until Draco got done nursing his new wounds and chasing after her. They circled the fountain a few times, taking turns reaching down to cup a handful of water to throw at each other.

Ginny was making her seventh time around when she slipped on a pool of water and reaching around to grab the nearby Draco for support, they both crashed into the water of the fountain. Sputtering and closing her eyes beneath the hair that crowded her eyes, Ginny forced her self to breathe. Pushing back her locks she looked to her right where Draco was glaring at her from behind his blonde hair.

"What?"

"What they hell did you pull me in for?"

"I felt like it." Ginny stated. With a giggle she reached forward and brushed his hair back. She saw him start, as if he thought she was going to slap him. She frowned, something she seemed to be doing quite a bit lately. "What?"

"Nothing." He answered quickly and grabbed her arm to pull her up. Ginny shrugged this off and stood, trying her best to squeeze the water out of her shirt. Shivering, she steadied her balance, or tried to, as she attempted to make her way out of the fountain basin. Draco seemed to be in the same condition, struggling himself. It wouldn't have been so bad had they not splashed water all over the place and the bottom of the basin not been so slick.

Nearly toppling each other a few times the two finally made it out of what Ginny feared might become her watery home and ran for the warmth of the manor interior. Neither had their wands and had to manage with the Muggle way to warm their bodies. Draco, not fairing well with this at all, stopped as they barely made it out of the ballroom, in the hallway between it and the dining room. "This is b-b-b-lood-d-dy rid-d-dicul-l-lous…" He stuttered, teeth chattering. Winter nights in the UK combined with wet clothes only led to colds for children.

Ginny smiled and nodded, turning to him. "I agree but it's not that cold." Of course her arms were firmly across her chest to hide the more physical signals that her body was chilly. "Come here…" She trailed off, wrapping her arms around him. "Here just hold tight a minute." She said, rubbing his back with the palms of her hands.

Draco immediately stiffened as she expected but slowly he let his arms fall around her and bring her closer to him. "There, just like dancing lessons, you know?" She looked up to find an odd look on Draco's face. He watched her with something she couldn't quite identify and she turned away, resting her chin on his chest. What was he looking at her like that for? Like this was something so taboo?

They stood there for some time, holding each other until the heat between them stopped Draco's teeth from chattering and Ginny's protruding body parts returned to normal. But then they stood there for longer. Ginny's hands had stopped their ministrations, rubbing violently against Draco's back and instead had slowed to a gentle caress up and down his spine. There were a few times she could've sworn she'd felt him shiver but chalked it up to him still being cold.

Finally when it had drawn on quite long enough, she cleared her throat and looked up at him. He pulled his cheek off of her head where it had been resting and looked back at her. "Warm enough, then?" She asked. He nodded and they slowly broke the embrace.

"We'd have better luck heading to my room, it's closer." He voiced what she had been thinking. Nodding in reply she followed him up the stairs to his bedroom door where he let them in and closed it soundly behind him.

Crossing to his chest-of-drawers he pulled out a shirt and pair of pajama pants for himself and a shirt and pair of boxers for Ginny. "This is the best I can do. I can get the elves to get some of your things but you'd be wet longer." Ginny shrugged and grabbed up the clothes from his hands. These should do for now. After I change I'll get them to get my pajamas."

Draco snorted. "Yeah cause kitties and moons are so much better than that." He motioned to his clothes.

Ginny rolled her eyes and made her way for the bathroom. "Mr. Malfoy, how on earth would you know what my pajamas looked like?" With a click she knew the bathroom door was closed and she undressed, pulling Draco's shirt on over her head and pulling the boxers up. If she was lucky her hair wouldn't wet the shirt and make it see-through. It would happen that Draco had nothing but white undershirts in the drawer he had opened.

Knocking on the door as a warning, she opened it to find Draco sitting cross-legged on his bed, stretched out with his arms behind his head. Crossing the room, careful not to take too powerful of a step that would send her unsupported chest a-bounce, she settled at the foot of the bed, head where her feet would've been had she laid normally by him. She called for a house elf to get her things and with a pop it apparated into her room and was probably fumbling through the mess she had left to find them.

"What had you meant earlier?" She began, looking up at Draco. He raised an eyebrow.

"I don't have powers of ESP Weasley, what are you talking about?"

"Well if you weren't so impatient you'd know by know, I wasn't done talking."

Draco smirked. "Really? 'Cause the inflection in your voice said you were." He pointed out.

Huffing, she began to pick at her cuticle.

"Stop doing that." He waved a hand at her and she stuck her tongue out in reply. "But anyways, what are you talking about?"

Ginny shifted to look at him more straight on. "When you said stop picking toads in the note, what did you mean by that?"

At that moment the elf walked in with Ginny's pajamas and handed them to her. She departed to change and although she didn't notice, Draco was relieved that he had time to deliberate his reply. Upon return he marveled at how well Ginny could look in pajamas. Her breasts were displayed by a stretched out word that was no longer readable on a pink tank top. Her long legs were tempting, exposed from beneath shorts that could barely be called shorts.

Her skin, he noticed, had somehow gotten tanner since her time at the manor, she was no long alabaster with freckles, she was now a healthy looking peachy beige tint. Her cheeks were red and her curls were tied up on top of her head, dried. He supposed she had the elf grab her wand as well.

She sat down on the bed beside him this time, (seeing as she had a bra on), and crossed her legs, elbows propped up on her knees. "So what did you mean when you said that?"

So she wasn't going to drop this, he thought. Sighing, Draco rubbed his forehead a bit, leaving red lines on his pale skin when he pulled his hand away. "It was nothing, I don't even remember now that you ask, why?" Smooth, Malfoy. You learned well the art of distraction, make her confess why she's so interested.

Ginny shrugged and picked at his comforter. "Just wondering, I didn't know if you were referencing Blaise or Harry."

Draco nearly cringed. "You and Potter were a thing?" How had he not known about this?

Ginny blinked at him. "How could you not have known that? My entire fifth year we were dating. He dumped me at Dumbledore's funeral to go hunting for Voldemort."

Draco felt his stomach knot. "That's absolutely disgusting. Any attraction I had for you as a fellow human being is now gone."

Ginny gaped at him. "Then what exactly am I, Malfoy?"

"A troll." He nodded solemnly.

Ginny snorted and pushed her hand under the cuff of his leg, brushing his skin ever so slightly which made him sit straight up, and pulled on his leg hairs. "You're so petulant."

"I hardly see how that has anything with you being a troll." He crossed his arms, ignoring the pain but unable to ignore the fact that she had yet to move her hand from his leg and his skin was burning beneath her touch.

What was wrong with him? Why was she making him feel this way? Plenty of girls had caught his fancy before, it wasn't like Ginny wasn't like them but she had so many things they didn't… Wait a minute, he had meant to think they had so many things _she_ didn't…didn't he?

His hairs were tugged again. "Pay attention to me when I'm talking to you or I'll rip out every single hair on your body!" Ginny hollered.

"That would be quite an adventure Weasley since hair grows EVERYWHERE on the human body." He teased.

Ginny faked vomiting. "You're disgusting." She stated and leaned forward, shocking Draco as she lay beside him. She was on her side, her left leg curled up and right leg stretched out like his were. Her right arm cradled her head through the pillow and her left hand was busy playing with the seam of the pillow case. "I'm scared Draco." She almost whispered.

Eyes widening, he looked at her for a moment, the way the light played across her face and the way her hair looked like it tickled her skin but she didn't react to it. "About what?" He asked, struggling to form words for some reason.

"What it's going to be like after the war." She paused, looking at her fingers as the stopped and rested on the mattress. "I thought I liked Harry but I don't. And I don't know if he knows that." She blinked as if fighting back tears. "After we broke he avoided me like the plague and after a month or something he finally wrote to me about how he couldn't be near me without wanting to grab me and kiss me and that's why he couldn't be around me… It was weird, I felt like I had gotten that letter from Percy or something…"

Sadly Draco imagined her prat of an older brother pouring his love into a note to his younger sister and promptly did his best to erase any memory of those two seconds. "What's the problem? You just tell him you don't like him and be done with it." Draco was struggling to see what she was so worried about.

Ginny's hazel eyes leapt up to make contact with his and they held him there. It was the first time he really saw her eyes, against the silver of his bed linens they were radiant. Alright, he told himself, you're allowed to like her cause she's smart, pretty, her laughing sounds like Christmas, and she's a complimentary color scheme to Slytherin colors.

"It's not just that though, I mean, I figured that's what I'd have to do but…" She trailed off and looked away from him.

"Ginny what is it?" He reached and let his hand rest on hers. Just then the chimes on the clock rang out that it was curfew. Smiling, Ginny pulled herself away from Draco and stood.

"It's nothing. I'd better go to sleep. We have an early day tomorrow right?" She acted like she wasn't about to divulge some huge secret to him. Draco was both amazed at how she resembled him sometimes and frustrated by it.

He nodded and swallowed down the dryness in his throat. She left without anything else but a "goodnight" and Draco was left to contemplate his newfound liking of Ginny and how sick it had made him that she had dated Potter. He rolled over and nearly broke the lamp turning it off. Well, he thought, at least she said she didn't like him. But what was she going to say…?


	10. Ch9: An American Arrival

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** They're off to America! You had questions, I give answers.

**Author's Note: **I don't know what it is but I'm on a writing war path! Maybe I'll finish the whole story before the month is up! (Haha yeah right…) You give me reviews I give you more chapters… it's like putting gas in your car except I'm free!

_Chapter Nine: An American Arrival_

The morning pressed at Ginny's eyelids like sandpaper. She had been rudely awoken by one of the house elves, poking and prodding at her as if she were cattle. Grumpy and irritable, Ginny forced herself from the comfort of her bed and stumbled into the bathroom for a shower. Thrusting herself inside the steamy vacuum, she sighed and let the drops of water roll down her chilled body. Last night the manor had been so warm, this morning she had been nearly freezing.

She ran her hands over her hair, calming it beneath the water and waiting until it was extremely saturated before attempting to shampoo it. She thought about Draco. His silver eyes, his blonde hair. She was particularly fascinated about his hair, she found out. After staying at Malfoy manor she had discovered exactly what it looked like beneath the gel.

His hair looked like silk in the light, thin and fine. It was in a way reminiscent of Ron's, except Ron's was much more unkempt. Draco's shortest layers were beneath his eyes settling atop his cheekbones. Beneath that a second layer touched his jaw line and added a bit of mystery to his appearance. Ginny had fantasized about running her hands through his hair many times since she had seen it in the garden one day, free and not held back by that demon goo.

She still struggled with the idea that his face was pointy, she never saw the connection with a ferret, though she teased him the name nonetheless. No, the bridge of his nose wasn't very wide, his jaw was pronounced and sharp, but he looked undeniably masculine and if she did say so herself: yummy.

She shook her head. She was going insane. Firstly, it would do her no good to think of Draco even remotely in any way outside of a friend. It would never happen, it just wasn't supposed to. Yes, she could agree with mass opinion that he was bloody gorgeous but she had to give up any fantasies of rolling around the floor with him. Well, she had to give up the possibility of that reality. She could always have the spaces of her mind to play with him.

She kicked herself for thinking such thoughts. She was a Weasley, she was a Gryffindor, she was a _lady, _and she need not be thinking those naughty, naughty things.

Oh but how she liked to.

Grunting and throwing her soap bottle on the floor, she quickly finished washing up and grabbed the towel that hung over the shower door to wrap up her hair. Taking another, she slid it around her body and nestled herself in its terry-cloth warmth. She loved towels, especially absorbent ones. The ones at the Burrow were nice, but they hardly got the water off. She paused. She had just referred to her _home _as "the Burrow."

She considered this. Was it really her home anymore? Had she not found her place at least temporarily in the house Malfoy? Was that not now her home? Struggling with this conflict that perpetuated inside her, she nearly dropped to the floor when she realized her change of clothes had been left in her bedroom. Grumbling about how she was sure the house elf had left by now, she pulled open the door to the bedroom and nearly dropped the towel that was shielding her very nude body.

"Bloody hell, Draco, mind a warning!?" She braced herself against the frame of the door and clutched the ends of the towel to her with more fervor than before.

Draco sat on the edge of her bed, one foot sitting casually on the opposite knee. He raised an eyebrow in reply to her mini heart attack and fought back a smirk. "Do forgive me, Gin, I just assumed you didn't tramp about your room naked."

Ginny glared in return, and snatching up her clothes, stuck her tongue out at him with great ferocity and slammed the bathroom door shut behind her, locking it as loudly as she could. Her cheeks surprisingly held their color until she looked in the mirror and saw just how much of her body had been revealed to him. Her breasts were pressed together by her arm and the cleavage it produced had been staring him in the face.

The towel swept across her body, grabbing at her waist and spread out at her hips, opening in a slit up her thigh. Blushing furiously, she threw the towel to the ground and succeeded in knocking things about on the counter trying to get dressed.

----------------------

Draco waited outside the bathroom for Ginny. The second she had slammed the door in his face he had let out a gust of breath and toppled over. Forcing his muscles to relax he covered his groin where his body protruded against the fabric of his pants. What in blazes was she doing flouncing about like that? The image he had just been treated to flashed in his mind. Her full breasts teasing him from behind her arm and that stupid towel, her shapely legs reaching out and that slit… That damned slit, tempting his eyes upwards to the shadow the towel prevented him to see.

He felt a little slimy but no worse for wear knowing that while she was talking he was only half paying attention as his body was only half available for that particular sense. Groaning he arranged himself for modesty's sake and fell back against the bed. She was driving him absolutely mad without knowing it and that seemed to make things all the more difficult for him to deal with. Sighing, he left his hands on his stomach so if need be he could protect her virgin eyes from what his body so seriously wanted to do.

Just as he was going to let himself venture to what those things would entail, Ginny stepped out of the bathroom dressed and hair dried, ready for the trip. Almost thankful for this, Draco stood and led her downstairs to Narcissa's sitting room.

-----------------------

It wasn't a long journey by any means, they had gone by portkey, but it was rather exhausting to do so overseas. Their things had been connected to the portkey by a rope and they landed somewhere on a vast expanse of land. Turning, they found themselves in the courtyard of a small cottage covered in vines and hidden by indigenous trees. The air here was different, a bit warmer and smelt of something not found in the UK.

Ginny followed Narcissa and Draco up to the door where a man stood, hands on his suspenders and a grin on his face. "Narcissa!" He exclaimed, taking her shoulders gingerly into his hands and placing a kiss on her forehead. What a wonderful surprise. Business or pleasure?" He asked almost right away. Ginny frowned, she had a feeling what he meant. Draco had explain that Lee was a doctor that Narcissa had met while in school and trusted to care for her after all of Lucius' beatings.

"Business, I'm afraid." Narcissa forced a weak smile, something Ginny was surprised she could see through. After introductions they were given a tour of the cottage, a small one bedroom one bath place where Lee lived by himself and tended to his land with no connection to the Muggle world. His house was visible to Muggles but so far removed from them that they never took notice.

They ate dinner there, Lee living up to his reputation of poorly executed jokes and the food meeting all standards required to feed the grumbling stomachs of Ginny and Draco. They departed the cottage and were met by what Ginny recognized as a town car. Her father would love to hear about Malfoy's riding in Muggle modes of transportation. Realization dawned on her, that's why Narcissa and Draco hadn't brought any robes, they were going to be spending their time (with the exception of Lee's place) in Muggle territory.

They all clamored into the vehicle and drove off to a hotel where Narcissa bought them each rooms and handed Ginny and Draco their keys, bidding them a goodnight and excusing herself. Ginny watched her walk away.

"Don't worry; she's going back to Lee's even though she wants us to think she's going to her room. She'll be there the majority of the time we're here." Draco tilted his head in the direction of their rooms and Ginny nodded, following closely behind him. Narcissa had been able to get them the last two rooms together, across the hall from one another. The doorman had dragged their trunks up to their respective rooms and let them be.

Ginny looked around. It was quaint, sterile, more luxurious than the Burrow but far below the Manor. Draco, she figured, must be having a fit. She crossed the hall and knocked in his door. After a few curses could be heard through the heavy wood it creaked open to reveal a scowling Draco. Ginny giggled. "What, having that poor of a time already?" Pushing open his door she squeezed her way in between his body and the door.

"Well at least it's not as bad as mine, I don't even have a sofa like you do. All I have is a chair and a table." She turned back to find Draco staring at her in disbelief. "What?"

"Not even going to let me invite you in?"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Don't play that bollocks with me Malfoy, you can't use manners as an excuse between us anymore." She turned to peek out his window to inspect the view. He watched her with curiosity, she had referred to them as "us." He found this odd, he hadn't really thought of their friendship in a way that combined the two of them into an "us." He relived the sound of it in his head until finally he realized he was staring.

"Weasley." He called for her from across the room, for some reason he didn't find himself able to lift his feet. Ginny turned to face him, eyebrows raised in confusion.

"Weasley? Since when have you called me that anymore? What's gotten into you are you sick?" She closed the space between them and placed the back of her hand on his forehead. He felt his skin tingle where she touched and his stomach do flip flops. What had gotten into him? She didn't know how appropriate that question was.

"Nothing, stop being annoying. Let's go for a walk." He lightly waved her hand away and turned for the door.

Ginny, not thinking twice about what had just transpired, followed.

-------------------------------

They stood next to each other in comfortable silence alone on the elevator, Ginny marveling at being in one again, Draco trying to hide his white knuckled grip on the bar behind him. He was not a fan of elevators having been stuck in one for nearly two hours the last time he had come with his mother.

Ginny was blatantly unaware of this and hummed some tune that served in soothing him for the time they were in the death chamber.

The elevator binged pleasantly and the doors slid open, Draco rushing out and waiting for Ginny. As she appeared beside him they walked in silence, surveying their surroundings. The building itself was a giant rectangle made up of identical floors with identical rooms that coordinated a maze of hallways. The lower level, the floor Draco and Ginny found themselves on, was an even bigger mystery than all the others.

They stepped out into a long corridor that to the left went on to more rooms and more corridors. To the right was an alcove containing, well, frankly Ginny and Draco didn't know what they were. Ginny had seen them before, her father had called them… Oh, what were they? Hermione had mentioned that they were a convenient Muggle way to get snacks and drinks.

Well, it wasn't very important.

Ginny and Draco decided not to take that route and instead made their way to the front desk. In passing they saw rooms that had glass windows barricading assorted Muggles on bicycles that didn't go anywhere. Draco muttered about their obvious idiocy but with a swift punch in the side from Ginny he was quieted. "It's a Muggle activity, I'm sure some of the things we do would be strange to them."

Draco scoffed and ignored her.

Ginny, rolling her eyes, stopped dead in her tracks. It wasn't until he was thirty paces ahead of her that Draco realized he had lost her. Turning he saw the redhead with her face pressed up against a wall of glass as she peered into a room. "What in bloody…" He trailed off as he saw what it was she was looking at. It was a giant indoor ocean. Children were splashing around with plastic tied around their arms, elderly women in tight black shiny fabric were walking back and forth across an area and teenagers their age were balling themselves up midair as they jumped in.

"What in Merlin's name are they doing?" Draco's eyebrows were sewn together in utter shock.

"It's a pool." Ginny stated, a twinkle in her eyes that made Draco nervous. "Come on." Ginny wrapped her fingers around his wrist and dragged him back to the elevator.

"Ginny what are you doing? Ginny? Ginny are you listening to me?" Ginny shook her head and Draco sighed. He wasn't going to get through to her.

Ginny dragged Draco up to her room and once inside, through him against the bed (well, shoved him in the direction of it) and began fishing around in her trunk. "I figured we would be around a pool so I decided to bring my swimming suit." She explained, although, Draco still had no clue what she was talking about. "Here we are!" She exclaimed, pulling out assorted pieces of clothe like the Muggles in that room were wearing.

"Oh no, I'm not wearing anything like that!" He pointed a finger at a brightly patterned small sized article.

"That's not for you!" Ginny laughed. "That's my suit, here!" She handed him a pair of shorts. They were an odd texture and Draco didn't know what to think about them. "I wear them over my suit for modesty but I guess it's a good thing since now you've got something to wear." She pushed him towards the bathroom. "I bet it'll take you longer to change than me so you can have the bathroom, I'll be out here when you get done."

She shut the door in his face and he could hear her cackling through the paper thin walls. Grumbling he stared down at the shorts Ginny had given him. How was he supposed to put these things on? Grunting, he shucked his clothing and stood before the mirror embarrassed that he was about to put on those shorts. Scowling he shouted out to her. "Do I really have to wear these!?"

He waited for her response. "Yes stupid!"

Scowling he inspected the shorts and decided that the way in which to get them on was to pull them up. He did his best in picking which side was the front and pushed his legs through the garment. Pulling it up and securing it with the ties, he inspected himself in the mirror. It created an odd shape on his body but at least his well toned chest was showing.

Opening the door he stepped out to find Ginny looking out the window again. Well, her entire body wasn't really the first thing he noticed. She was bent over the arm of the couch, body in an S shape. Her shapely bum barely covered was the focal point. He admired it first then followed her legs down to her feet where they kicked back and forth. He leaned to the right, trying to catch a glimpse of her bare stomach and breasts. Smirking, he cleared his throat.

As Ginny turned he nearly lost the air to speak. They way her body twisted and curved, her breasts projecting outward, her stomach sloping in towards her belly button and her shapely legs flexed under the weight of her body (which he guessed wasn't very much). He wasn't even embarrassed when she snorted at him.

"You've got them on backwards you moron." She ushered him back into the bathroom and after a minor wardrobe malfunction and the procurement of towels they made their way down to the swimming pool that Ginny had spoke of.

As they walked through the heavy glass door and into the swimming pool room, Draco felt the temperature of the water beneath his feet and felt his lips twitch at the thought of Ginny's physical reaction to its coldness. They managed to get two chairs next to each other and set up stations of towels and their flip flops. Draco, still hesitant to get into the water, let Ginny volunteer to splash around a bit by herself while he lifeguarded her.

Rolling her eyes, Ginny tied up her hair and managed the first few steps of the shallow end before turning towards Draco. "It's a lot colder than I thought it was going to be." Draco gave her a small laugh and leaned back in his chair, hands behind his head, and closed his eyes.

Surprising himself, he managed to dose off and when he woke up he heard splashing and giggling that sounded awfully familiar. Blinking his eyes open he felt his stomach tighten in jealousy as Ginny bounced around with a group of Americans. They seemed to be playing a sport, keeping a ball above their heads and hitting it back and forth. Grunting, Draco picked himself up and kicked off his flip flops.

If those Americans could do it, certainly he could too. Marching to the steps he cleared all of them and promptly stepped back up half of them. Teeth chattering, he remembered his Malfoy reserve and turned back, forgetting the cold.

"Draco!" Ginny called out, missing her chance to keep the ball in the air. Draco noticed the smiles of those around her fall at the excitement in her voice. Excitement? Draco felt his heart pound as she pushed through the water to join him. What was this emotion he was feeling? Pride? Why would he be proud? Of course Ginny should rather spend time with him than those awful Americans.

"Draco," She was out of breath and he was happy about it, she had worked to come see him and she had a huge grin on her face. He loved it. "You decided to come in. Come on, I'll introduce you. I met these Americans, they're really nice." She grabbed his wrist and turned to walk back.

"I bet they are…" Draco muttered underneath his breath.

"What is that supposed to mean?" Ginny turned and frowned at him.

"Oh nothing," Draco shrugged, leaving his wrist in her hand, any excuse to have her dote on him in front of those other guys. "It's just I'd be real nice to a pretty girl too."

Ginny grinned and he didn't know if he liked the twinkle in her eyes that accompanied it. "Draco Malfoy…" She grabbed his other wrist and he blushed. "You're real nice to me, are you saying I'm pretty?" She was obviously teasing but the insinuation made Draco twitch, or maybe it was that when she turned her head that way and seemed so coy he wanted to believe she was actually flirting with him.

"Don't be stupid, you might as well be another boy to me, you're just a mate."

If he didn't know any better, he would've thought the look on her face for a split second was disappointment. Instead of lasting it morphed into a smile and she shrugged, running off with her Americans. Jaw clenched and hands balled into fists, he followed her halfway into the water and then left her to the Americans. If she was going to be insolent and waste her time with them, who was he to stop her?

Turning he managed to step on the one spot on the pool floor that hadn't managed to get a good coating of roughness, slipped, and smashed his forehead onto one of the steps. From then on it was black.

------------------------------

Draco thought his head was going to explode. Forcing his eyelids open he founds himself staring into two hazel cups of hot chocolate. Focusing he saw the outlines of Ginny's face twisted into a worried expression. She was biting her plump bottom lip and the way she was sitting next to him allowed for full view of her chest. Smiling he dared to speak.

"How long was I out?"

"Not very," Ginny brought a wet cloth to a particularly tender spot on his forehead. "You're lucky you know that? With all those boys around I was able to find someone to carry you up here."

Draco looked around. He was in Ginny's room. The American knew where Ginny's room was. "I bet you didn't have trouble with that, did you?"

"Don't be a pervert." Ginny snapped, pouting beautifully. "And no, I actually had a few volunteers. But you'll be happy to know it wasn't a favor, I paid him back." Draco blanched. He really didn't want to continue the conversation.

Ginny grinned and began to press the cloth around his forehead. Draco hissed and smacked her hand away. "What are you mad? Cut that out!"

Ginny smacked him back and set the towel down.

Draco ran his fingers over the seam of the comforter. "So…" He trailed off.

"So what?" Ginny asked, raising an eyebrow.

"So how could you possibly repay him? You don't have any Muggle money." Draco looked away, refusing to see the expression on her face. She had won the battle.

"I said I'd let him call me tonight."

"Ginny!"

"What?"

Draco sat up straight stared her in the eyes. "That's nonsense! An American? Really? A Muggle?"

"What's so bad about it?" She asked indignantly, hands on her hips.

Draco snorted and kicked his feet over the bed to get up. His head quickly began to swirl and upon trying to stand up, he found himself palm against the nearby wall just trying to keep off the floor. He tried not to admit to himself that Ginny attempting to hold him up and fawning over him made him feel good, but he savored being pitiful and having her care for him. "Unh…"

"Draco, you need to just lie down and relax. You had a nasty bump on your head and I was able to minimize it when we got up here but I didn't have any potions for the headache." She guided him back to the bed so he could lie back onto the pillows. "Please, just rest."

The tone in her voice made his stomach warm. Did she truly care for him? Draco first had to convince himself that Ginny could care for someone like him. Ginny was from another world, one completely opposite from his own. She had a large family, she lived in a home that could barely accommodate standards in a teenage life and she was far from spoiled. He recalled seeing her in things he had seen her brothers wearing.

She was a Gryffindor to top it all off. Slytherins and Gryffindors were bred to hate each other, not like each other.

Not that he liked her.

Or that she liked him.

Or that they remotely liked each other.

But in the meantime, he mused, he could deal with a little babying over him. They sat in silence for a while, Draco finding place in the room to look other than Ginny, Ginny staring directly at him. How could she stare at him like that in such a delicate moment? How could she so bold-facedly search him for any sign of reaction? He finally brought himself to acknowledge her and look up. Her eyes searched him and he felt like he was being prodded by a doctor.

"What?" He snapped. She jumped at the shock of his shout and he immediately felt bad for it.

Ginny plastered a smile on her face and got up, walking to the other side of the bed. He watched her as she picked up a pillow and the blanket from the foot of the bed. Without a word she set up a place for herself in one of the chairs. He sighed and cocked an eyebrow. "Ginny," He started.

She looked over at him. Blinking, she waited.

"What… what were you going to say… last night before you left? What were you going to say?"

Ginny's eyes seemed so different as he looked at them. So full of something that he had never seen before and she was about to let him into this secret place that he wanted so much to be a part of. "I," She paused and Draco nodded. "I was going to ask what would happen to us."

Draco frowned. Standing, this time his resolve to sit next to her trumped his nausea. Falling beside her on the arm of the chair, he leaned against the back of the chair and balanced himself. "What… what do you mean?"

Ginny blushed and stared down at her hands. "I mean, what's going to happen to us after the War? Regardless of who wins I think it's obvious that we're both thrown on one side or the other despite what we want. But, will that kill our…" He couldn't put what they were into words either. It was strange to him, to feel this way about someone else.

He had mates, but they in no way compared to Ginny. He could tell her things he couldn't tell them, things they either would have laughed at or ignored. Instead Ginny related to them and teased him playfully about it. On more than one occasion they had talked about his family, about how hard it was for him to be at home and he hadn't had regrets about any of the times. And it wasn't just him talking either.

Ginny shared things with him that made him feel like he was actually worth something. He was actually her friend, not just her his.

He had dated before, although he wasn't sure if Pansy counted, but she hadn't been the only one. With those girls he had known specifically how he felt about them but there was something different about this. They were shy around each other and he had never been shy before. He hated it, yes, but to some extent he desired to feel it again. It made him feel like he wasn't part of his twisted world anymore, that he was part of this fantasy realm that Ginny belonged to and she was his ticket in.

He couldn't say that he had romantic feelings for her because he refused to think of it, but he knew that if he let himself think of it… there was only one clear answer.

"Ginny," He hooked his finger beneath her chin and brought it up so she looked him in the eyes. "I hope you know a friendship with me doesn't just go away. So far I've only stopped being friends with someone if they've botched the friendship themselves, you know, betrayed me and all. Are you planning on betraying me?" She shook her head. "So there, no worries then."

"But-" He knew what she was going to say. What about Voldemort? He wouldn't stand for a Malfoy being friends with a blood traitor. He touched his finger to her lips and felt his body tingle with knowing now exactly what her lips felt like.

"If I were you I'd let the rest be left up to the future, I don't like planning for the worst and quite frankly those aren't thoughts to sleep on." She nodded and he settled back on the bed.

He watched her stare at the ground, pretending she was comfortable in the chair and finally he had enough. "Ginny, come here." He patted the space on the bed beside him. He thought he saw relief flush her face and her cheeks tinge pink. Pride surged through him at the thought of having the power to do that to her. Slytherin girls had long since forgotten what to blush at and were nearly worse than the boys. Ginny's innocence was endearing and he liked it.

She crawled onto the bed next to him and laid down, arm under the pillow. He settled so they faced each other and he rested his free arm next to hers on the bed. As she closed his eyes he took her in for a moment, watching the way her red hair shone against her skin. Smiling, he closed his eyes and moved his hand over hers. Before he drifted into sleep he felt her hand squeeze back.


	11. Ch10: Narcissa's Secret Love

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** I think one of you asked for D/G action… oh wait! That was all of you! AHA here it is my avid readers!

**Author's Note: **Why shouldn't you run? You could trip and fall on your face, that's why. That's sorta what happened with this chapter here… my muse tripped and fell into a hole and I couldn't find the poor thing for _ages_, do forgive.

_Chapter Ten: Narcissa's Secret Love_

Ginny jumped when the phone rang. Drowsy and fumbling she reached for the phone and held it to her ear. "He-Hello?" Beside her she heard Draco stir. Looking over she saw him open his eyes and scowl.

"Ginny! It's Jared!" Ginny cringed, she'd forgotten he was supposed to call.

"Jared! How are you?" Ginny felt her cheeks flush as Draco fumed. Ginny pleaded with her eyes for him not to blow up, she could see it coming. Jared began rattling on about something but Ginny wasn't paying attention. Why would Draco be having this kind of reaction about Jared? Frowning Ginny tried to tune into the conversation.

"So anyways, how's that guy? I guess he's probably snoozing it off in his room?" Ginny froze. Draco smirked, he had heard that.

"Ginny doll, come back to bed won't you? It's getting cold under here!" Draco cooed. Ginny blanched.

"Oh uh, I guess I've to let you go then?"

Ginny gulped.

"Yeah I think so, I'm sorry. Maybe I'll see you before I leave then?" Jared muttered some noncommittal monosyllabic response and Ginny hung up the phone. Turning back to Draco she smacked him in the chest. "What is wrong with you? Now he thinks I'm some sort of tramp!"

Draco rolled off the bed and gathered up his towel, wrapping it around his neck. "And exactly why is that supposed to matter, huh? Why does it matter what _Jared _thinks of you?"

Ginny withdrew. "It doesn't I'd just rather not be thought of as a tramp by anyone."

Draco snarled. "A little late for that now isn't it?"

With a gasp Ginny brought up her arm and without thinking twice smacked him cleanly across the cheek.

Draco was stunned and stared at her for a moment, completely at a loss for words. Slowly the world began to fall back into place around him and he took notice of his surroundings. Ginny's chest was rising and falling quickly, obviously she had just gotten wind of her actions. She was pink across her face and chest; he knew she was heating up with embarrassment.

This opportunity was just too good to pass up. Ignoring his Malfoy conscience screaming about standards, he closed the distance between them. Swiftly taking her cheeks into his hands he pressed his lips to hers.

The kiss itself wasn't soft or hungry or rough but just right. He had pressed his lips quickly against hers but had been gentle in doing so. One of his hands slid to the back of her neck and the other dropped to her waist, bringing her in closer to deepen the kiss.

Ginny complied, lifting her arms around his neck and bending her knee so their legs brushed. Her brain had melted and her reservations had gone out the window. This is why he had reacted the way he had, and this is why she had liked that he did. Her heart jumped at the thought that she and Draco actually _liked _each other. Not that they tolerated each other, not that they were mates, but that they liked each other.

Pulling back for air Draco realized the sin he had just committed against his family name and separated himself from her. Muttering a breathless apology he grabbed up his room key and let the door close behind him with a slam. Struggling with his door he thanked Merlin when it finally opened and let that slam too, sliding against it. "What was I thinking?" His head fell back against the door and his chest pounded painfully.

He fancied Ginny Weasley and he had kissed her. He had actually let his defenses down and kissed her and damn had it felt good. But what if she hadn't felt the same? He'd be humiliated. And even if she did feel the same, was it something he would sacrifice the Malfoy traditions for? His mother had practically opened the door of possibilities when it came to Ginny. He shouldn't be in the wrong for fancying her. He had, as a matter of fact, waited until she was halfway a Malfoy herself before taking interest in her. It wasn't like she was still a bottom-feeding Weasley.

Well, she had the name but Draco would be one of the first people to comment on how a last name meant nothing when it came to the person.

With a heavy sigh he threw the towel across the room. Bringing his fingertips to his lips he remembered the feel of her lips against his.

Across the hall Ginny stared at her door, eyes wide and lips red with use. Bringing her fingertips to them they tingled with the memory of his lips against hers. Her cheeks hurt with how hot they were and she realized it was also because she was grinning like an idiot. Draco Malfoy had kissed her. And then he'd gotten embarrassed and run off like child. The second part wasn't quite as romantic as the first but she'd take it anyways.

She couldn't believe that she actually liked him. Fancied him, enjoyed the kiss they shared and the way he looked when she had answered the phone. Loved it when he intentionally made Jared think they were together. Reveled in knowing that Draco had wanted to kiss her and had taken the chance when it presented itself.

Without two thoughts to rub together she crossed the distance between where she stood and her door and thrust it open. Stepping across the hall to his room, she knocked on his door, hers shutting quietly behind her. She waited and heard rustling on the other side of the door. "Who is it?" She heard Draco's voice grind out. She knocked again. "Oh bloody hell…" Draco was about to mouth off to whoever it was disturbing him when he saw it was Ginny. He froze.

Ginny did her best to ignore the welt appearing on his cheek and pushed herself into the room. Before letting him register what was going on and before he could start making excuses about anything, she flung herself at him and kissed him back. She immediately indulged her fantasies in running her fingers through his hair, loose and silky. As they played with all the different ways they could turn their heads to kiss, Ginny pressed herself closer to him, wanting him to feel the way her heart beat in her chest, wanting him to want to run his hands all over her body.

She was almost seventeen anyways. She had every right to be as perverted as he wanted to.

She pushed her hips against his, wanting to peak his arousal and was satisfied at the groan she elicited. She felt him turn her about and she was laid down on his bed. She scooted back, their lips never parting, and he was on top of her, dragging his fingertips down her sides. Everywhere he touched burned with desire, the desire for his hands to be there again but to travel elsewhere, all over.

She forced herself to stop thinking of all the things she really wanted to do and settled with the fact that they would have a good snog, rub each other up, but nothing more. She wouldn't be the girl that gave it all up in one night (even though she wanted to _really bad_). She wouldn't let her hormones take control of her better sense. She wouldn't.

Draco on the other hand was disadvantaged, his hormones killing any thinking process that could've occurred. The pressing of her body to his excited him on so many different levels it was like having sex on a roller coaster in the dark and upside down. He really didn't know what to do with all the information being presented to him at once. First and foremost her body fit so well with his that it couldn't be denied they belonged together at least physically.

Her lips were so supple and giving, each kiss made him want more. She tasted like mangos and pool water. With every breath she took her breasts pressed up against his chest and he wanted nothing more than to rip off that stupid swimming suit and ravage her body but restrained himself. He couldn't imagine how a family famous for not having girls in it could make such a perfect example.

Everywhere he touched her skin was silk and smooth, hot to the touch and curving around her hips and butt. Rolling them over so they were on their sides, he ventured her back, feeling the way it dipped and then protruded where her bum was. Pushing his hand across a well rounded cheek, Ginny inhaling sharply and inadvertently bucking her hips to his; he grabbed her thigh and hooked her leg over his.

Running his fingertips up and down the back of her thigh, he wondered how he couldn't have seen this before, this beauty. Even when he had lived with her for nearly five months or three or however long it had been he had known her for close to… His brain couldn't function with numbers when she was moaning into his mouth.

Ginny, feeling rather adventurous pushed Draco's body into the bed. Straddling him she pressed her crotch bluntly against his. Feeling his arousal in more ways than one, she nipped at his bottom lip and proceeded to attack his neck with kisses and licks and bites that made Draco twitch and press his fingertips into her thighs where he was holding on for dear life.

How she could bring him to this level of insanity in so short of time was beyond him, but he was also beyond thinking at that point. "Ginny…" He gasped, kissing her shoulder, her arm, any bit of skin that was close to his lips. "Ginny I lied; you aren't just a mate to me." He attempted to explain.

Ginny laughed and it sounded like bells ringing to him. "Of course I'm not; I don't think you'd kiss Crabbe or Goyle like this." She tucked the curls that had come loose from her bun behind her ears as she sat back to look him in the eyes.

Draco stuck his tongue out in disgust. "Terrible moment to be revolting, Gin."

She laughed again and he immediately forgave her. "Sorry, just making a point." She slid off of his lap and lay down beside him, wrapping an arm around his chest. Turning his head Draco indulged himself with another kiss, this one lingering for a few seconds as their lips took their time in parting.

"Are you going to make an honest girl out of me Draco?" Ginny asked, eyelids half closed.

Draco smirked and dropped his hand from her cheek to her stomach. "You want me to make an honest girl out of you?"

Ginny blanched and pinched his nipple receiving a "gods Ginny!" in return. "Not like that you pervert! I meant are you going to ask me out or not?"

Draco looked over at her, jaw slack. He hadn't really thought about that, he supposed it would have been obvious. "Well, of course I am. That's a stupid question. Why would I want you running around with _Jared_ telling him that you're single?"

Ginny giggled and settled against him again. "Oh but Jared's just so handsome you know, Americans, they are rather pretty…"

"Don't be a wretch." Draco cringed, holding her tightly to him. "You're boyfriend is the finest looking bloke on the face of the planet and you'll think nothing else." He stated firmly.

Ginny smiled and watched him nod in a dominant fashion. "I know he is." She whispered and drank in the expression that crossed his face.

Draco turned his head to look her straight on, completely blown away that she would say something like that. He had only been playing; he wasn't expecting her to agree. Usually girls would brush him off, this time he was actually flattered. Blushing slightly he pressed a kiss to her lips. "I can't say I've been left wanting either."

"Aw," Ginny teased, poking his cheek. "A blushing Draco. Where's a camera when I need one?" She left a kiss on each cheek followed by a peck on his lips.

Draco took her hand in his and left a kiss to each knuckle, then the back of her hand, then her wrist, all the way up her arm until he couldn't reach. "I'm serious Ginny." He elevated himself onto his elbow so he could emphasize his point. He brushed a strand of red hair away from her face, tracing her jaw with his finger. "I'm sorry I've never said it before but you're absolutely gorgeous."

Not knowing how to reply Ginny began their second snog session and they continued into the night until they fell asleep, wrapped in each others arms.

---------------------------------

Ginny woke up to Draco's fingertips running long lines up and down her arm. The feeling was positively heavenly; his gentle caress combined with the heat his body provided her barely clothed body made this feel like home. _Draco and I are dating._ She thought, a ball of energy welling up inside of her, making her want to scream. If someone would have told her she and Draco Malfoy would be dating not six months into her stay at the Manor, she'd have them referred to St. Mungo's.

As Ginny stretched cat like in her spot, Draco's hand fell to her bare stomach. She turned and smiled up at him. "Morning." She almost whispered. His eyes were even more gorgeous than she had remembered. She had always thought that they were gray and icy. Now she saw they held a hint of blue, resembling silver more than gray, and when she thought them icy they were tumultuous and heated. Draco was an enigma and a gorgeous enigma.

Ginny pressed her body against his, marveling in his chiseled frame, running her fingertips lightly across his abs. Not washboard abs, but she hated overly muscular boys. No, Draco was just right. There was definition but not the rolling hills of English countryside on his stomach. More importantly, her fingers reminded her, his hair was silk.

"Morning." He whispered back, bringing a hand up to play with her red curls. For a moment they stared into each others eyes, playing with one another's hair until Draco took the initiative to lean in for a kiss.

Ginny clamped her mouth shut. "MM MMM!" She hummed, holding up her hands to bring space between them.

Draco furrowed his eyebrows in confusion, lifting in question.

"We haven't brushed our teeth, no way am I letting you taste my morning breath! Yuck!" She rolled out of the bed and grabbed her room key from the table. Holding it up she smirked. "I'll be back, I've just got to brush my teeth, shower, and get dressed."

Draco rolled his eyes. "Oh good so I'll just be waiting for about half a day for that then?" Ginny waved him off and blew a kiss which pacified him enough for her to leave the room.

Ginny marched the few feet across the hall and brandishing her room key, prepared to swipe it before hearing a voice behind her.

"Ginny! Pleasant surprise!"

_Oh gods no…_ She turned, false smile plastered on her face. "Jared! Imagine seeing you here!"

Jared shrugged. "Well my floor's the one above this one and I was just having a walk around…" _Sure, _Ginny thought, _and Harry and Draco are best friends._

"That so?" She raised her eyebrows and smiled in feigned shock. Covering her mouth delicately, she nodded slowly, looking down each end of the hallway. Silence fell over them.

"So, where you coming from?" Jared asked, edges of his mouth twitching.

She opened her mouth to answer when Draco's door swung open. "Gin you left-" He stopped dead in his tracks at the sight of the American. _Jared._ Draco visibly tensed, standing straighter and flexing every visible muscle in his body. "Ah yes, you must be Jason." Draco extended his hand. "Don't think we've formally met, I'm Draco Malfoy."

Jared took Draco's hand, forcing a smile. "It's Jared act-"

Draco was wreaking jealousy at this point. "Why yes of course it is," He interrupted, withdrawing his hand and looking to Ginny with a cocked eyebrow. She knew this meant no good news. "Anyways, Gins you left _these_." The last word dripped off his tongue like molasses as he held out the clothes she had changed out of for her swimming suit. She blanched.

Jared reddened in exponential degree and muttered something about not missing the continental breakfast and took off for the elevator. Once he was out of sight Ginny stared at Draco, mouth hanging open. "I cannot believe you just did that."

Draco shrugged nonchalantly, taking her room key from her hand and swiping it through the idiotic mechanism on the door. Twisting the door handle he ushered her into the room and closed the door behind him.

"I cannot believe you just did that! What did I tell you last night about me being a tramp?" Ginny paused. "About me not being a tramp!" She corrected.

Draco smirked. "Ginny dear, you obviously don't understand this whole dating concept. If another man tries to, forgive the word choice, weasel his way in with my girl…" By this point his upper lip had curled and his smile had faded into a very ugly snarl. "Then I have no choice but to claim my territory outright and put the bastard back in his place. No one, I repeat no one touches my girl or thinks about it and by the look on his face when he saw me he was clearly thinking about it until I got there."

Ginny couldn't help but be elated at Draco's jealousy. All of her previous flings had either been petty or oblivious when it came to the topic of other men. Seamus had insisted Ron was flirting with her (which made her gag) and Harry wouldn't notice another boy rubbing her bum if she didn't point it out.

Ginny smiled.

Draco tilted his head, hesitant at what she might be thinking. "What?"

Ginny hooked her fingers together in front of her, turning slightly so she looked innocent. "You called me your girl…" She purred.

Draco looked like a fish, opening and closing his mouth repeatedly, searching for a reply. "I… you… he…"

"You really like me don't you _Draco._" Ginny continued her dance as she wiggled up to him, dropping her tone of voice slightly as she sad his name.

Draco blushed furiously and Ginny smiled.

"Don't be… frenm…"

Ginny cocked an eyebrow, a smirk that rivaled one of Draco's own on her lips. "Frenm? And which language would that be exactly?" She teased, running a finger up and down his chest. He was clearly not used to being a couple yet.

"Just… you… Dammit go brush your teeth!" Turning on his heel he slammed the door behind him.

Smiling in victory, having paid Draco back for humiliating her, she gathered up the things she would need for her shower. A knock sounded at her door and for a second she was afraid it might be Jared again. Looking through the peephole she saw a rather seething Draco. Opening the door he looked at her petulantly. "Left my key in my room." He muttered and threw himself into the chair at the opposite end of the room, brooding and staring out the window.

Shaking her head, Ginny took her shower, brushed her teeth and dressed. Appearing in her room, a billow of steam following her from the bathroom, she was delighted to see Draco's reaction to her clothes. She was wearing a knee length skirt that was essentially a skirt ten times too big for her bunched up by elastic at the waist. This made the skirt flow and sway and be able to expand when she curtseyed (not that she would need to, but the skirt was pretty). Her chest was almost spilling out of a black, sleeveless, Queen Anne neckline-d top.

Draco's jaw was brushing his chest as he lounged in the chair. She looked amazing.

Ginny smirked, walking over to him with a raised eyebrow. "Now we've go to get you all cleaned up." She stated, holding out her hand for him to take. He entwined his fingers with hers and stood. They made it nearly to the door when realization dawned on Draco.

"Oh, wait." He went back to the table next to the chair he had previously occupied and picked up an owl. "I bet I got one too, it's from mum." He handed the note to Ginny and stopped at the door. "Will you join me to get a spare key to my room?"

Ginny smiled and held out a key to him. "I nabbed one of your spares just in case." She handed it to him and looked down at the owl. "Lemme read this owl real quick and I'll head over to your room with you."

Draco nodded in compliance and sat down on the bed, waiting for her to finish the owl.

_Ginny,_

_I'm sorry I sent you two away so quickly but I had some business to attend to. I'll be finished up around noon and Lee has invited us for tea, a tour around his grounds, and dinner tonight. Be ready at two. I trust you to make the appropriate judgment call on attire. I hope you've enjoyed your time so far in America._

_Narcissa_

Ginny looked up at Draco. "We're invited to dinner at Lee's tonight."

Draco nodded. "Well then, I'll have to pick something nice to wear."

Ginny frowned and looked down at her outfit. "Do you think I should change?"

Draco shook his head, smiling. "I think you look positively fabulous." He paused. "And I look fabulous all the time but I do need to dress in something a bit more cohesive with what tonight will hold."

Ginny rolled her eyes at his arrogance.

------------------

Ginny and Draco had spent the rest of the morning trying to use the television but to no avail. The driver of the town car came by both their rooms (although they were held up in Draco's so they could snog intermittently) and they were off for Lee's. In the backseat of the car they held hands as Ginny watched the scenery fly by. She had never been in a car for this long before (it was a thirty minute drive to Lee's since his house was in the middle of his expanse of land) and the times she had come with her parents they'd always traveled by portkey.

She sighed, wondering if she would ever see them before the war was over.

Her eyes darkened.

Or if she would see them after that.

Draco could tell something was amiss and hooked his finger beneath her chin, leaning in to leave a light kiss against her lips. "You alright then?"

Ginny threw on a smile and nodded, fighting back the tears in her eyes. Draco had made it clear that her life was far better than his and she didn't want to hear him call her lucky again. Although, she knew she was.

They pulled up to the gravel circle in front of Lee's cottage and Ginny was helped out of the car by Draco who, surprisingly to Ginny, kept his hand at the bottom of her back as they walked up to the house. Surely, she thought, he would tone down the public displays of affection around his mother?

Lee opened the door before they reached the front step and let them in, cracking one joke after another. After Ginny was in stitches, Draco eyeing her confusedly, Lee feeling quite pleased that he had amused Ginny so much, they all found themselves on his back porch where Narcissa was sitting in a rocking chair.

Ginny's breath caught in her throat at the sight of the woman. She looked positively beautiful sitting there. Her long pale blonde hair was flying in the wind like ribbons and her cheeks had a healthy blush to them. Ginny brushed her own windswept strands behind her ears. Narcissa turned to acknowledge them both and Ginny swore for the first time Narcissa looked genuinely happy. "Ah, Draco, Ginevra, forgive me for not standing I find I'm a bit weak today."

Draco moved before Ginny could even register what all was going on. Something wasn't wrong here, and she was glad. Narcissa always seemed like she was busy or annoyed or something when at the Manor, but now… something wasn't _wrong_, it seemed being here in America made everything right and the planets align so that Narcissa could forget all of her burdens and be happy. Actually happy.

"No worries, mother. There's rarely anything more important than one's health." Narcissa nodded, used to Draco's cordiality. Ginny followed Draco over to the bench across from Narcissa where they both sat down, their backs to the land behind them. Narcissa looked past them to the trees covering Lee's land.

"It's absolutely lovely here, isn't it children? I'm always amazed when I come here. It's always a little bit like home but always so much different." Narcissa's eyes showed a deeper meaning and Ginny had to look away for fear of intruding on a private moment. Ginny knew Narcissa was here because of Lucius. This was her escape.

"It's gorgeous." Ginny breathed, taking in her surroundings at last. Lee stepped onto the porch holding a tray of drinks and after dispersing them he joined the silent audience of the nature around them. Ginny inhaled the scents deeply. Grass, rain clouds, trees. Narcissa was right, there was something so different about this place, it felt free.

Ginny looked to Narcissa and found her voice at last. "Thank you for bringing me here, to America I mean, I've never actually been to this state before." Narcissa's eyes searched Ginny's. It seemed that at once the bond they had built was re-established (if it had ever gone away at all) and Narcissa smiled.

"Where have you been? I don't travel the states much, most of my business remains closer to home, Lee's is the most I've seen of America really." Narcissa's voice was rich and warm, a far cry from the strict instructor Ginny had known during their lessons.

"Washington, D.C. mainly." Ginny replied.

Draco made a face at her. "Washington, D.C? You mean like during Christ? Well, that's foolish; they named a state after a religion?"

There was silence before Ginny fell into a fit of giggles followed by Lee. Narcissa grinned. Draco merely sneered. "No, no! D.C stands for District of Columbia!" Ginny restrained her laughter.

Draco grew red in the cheeks. "It's still a foolish name. Much like that North Virginia business." He muttered.

Ginny froze. "North Virginia?"

"Yes," Draco continued on nonchalantly, "That one state that looks like a hen leg."

Ginny blinked. "You mean West Virginia?" She bit the insides of her cheeks to keep from smiling.

"Bloody hell if I know which direction it's in!" He shouted and stood, crossing the porch to brood on the other side.

Ginny looked to Narcissa who rolled her eyes. "Lee, won't you take Draco around and show him the property?" Lee nodded with a knowing look and left Ginny and Narcissa alone. Ginny watched until Draco and Lee were far out of earshot. "Ginny," Narcissa began. Ginny turned to her. "I have a question."

Ginny nodded, folding her hands onto her lap and looking at the woman with slightly raised brows.

"What exactly is your relationship with my son at this time?" Ginny nearly choked on her own air. That wasn't quite the question she had been expecting from Narcissa.

Blushing furiously, she cleared her throat and attempted an answer. "Well, we had made friends see, and-"

"You two are dating." Narcissa finished.

Ginny gulped. "You could tell?"

Narcissa grinned. "I know my son, Ginny. Rarely does he blush or storm off when in my presence. In fact I've never seen my son blush before. It was an assumption not far out of question." Narcissa explained.

Ginny nodded in return. Now that she thought about it she hadn't seen Draco start blushing until just recently.

"Ginny, there's a conversation that we must have, one that I thought may never come but I fear it has to." Narcissa suddenly looked as if she had drawn herself inward, left her body. Her eyes became bit vacant as Ginny waited for her to continue. "You see Ginny, I must admit I've lied before. I know it's not very lady like and if I expect truth from you I should live up to my own standards shouldn't I?"

Ginny frowned. What was Narcissa getting at, she wondered?

"Ginny, Lee and I are seeing each other." Narcissa stated. Ginny nearly dropped her jaw on the floor. "We have been for some time now." Narcissa turned her attentions back to where Lee and Draco were standing off a ways, discussing something. Lee's hand was on Draco's shoulder and he was motioning to the trees. "I'm sure Draco has explained to you my reasoning for coming her."

Narcissa knew, it wasn't as if she was asking Ginny to confess, she was telling Ginny she knew. Ginny nodded anyways.

"Well, that's not how I met Lee, but it is a reason we became so close." Narcissa sighed, pushing her blonde hair behind her ear. "There are some things I can't tell you now, but you will find out soon. Just know that things at the Manor will change soon. Very soon."

Narcissa's cryptic message left Ginny in a haze the whole day. Narcissa had told her that Draco didn't know about Lee, that he wasn't ready to know back then, but that maybe someday he would be. Ginny couldn't tell if Narcissa was asking Ginny to relay the information, but just in case she kept it to herself. Dinner went over well, conversation that directed around trivial things. Ginny noticed the looks Lee and Narcissa exchanged with one another.

Before Draco and Ginny departed that night Narcissa explained that they would be leaving back for the Manor the next morning and to rest well. Ginny guessed that although Narcissa had bought three rooms at the hotel, she hadn't spent a second hers. Ginny didn't blame her. She suspected that Narcissa and Lee were in love and if Lucius ever found out Lee would be dead and Narcissa even worse. The only way they could see each other was for Lee to treat the wounds she received from Lucius.

Not exactly the best circumstances but in Ginny's eyes it glimmered with romance. The drive back Draco was talking about Lee building a bigger house on the land, one big enough for six people to stay there. Ginny straightened in her seat.

_Maybe that's what Narcissa meant, maybe she's going to leave Lucius and move to America with Lee!_ Ginny kept her mouth shut when it came to Lee and Narcissa being in love and joined Draco in flirtatious banter.

-------------------

Draco opened the door to his room and waited for Ginny to walk in before following her, flicking on the lights. Ginny set down her bag on the nearby chair and as she stood felt Draco wrap his arms around her waist. "You smell wonderful."

Ginny smiled, caressing his forearms. "Thank you." She whispered, not sure what to say back.

Draco turned her about and ran his fingers through her red curls, holding her cheeks with his palms as he kissed her. She settled her hands against his chest and they stood there for a few moments, engulfing each other in heated body rubbing and general tonsil hockey until Ginny pressed lightly on his chest, begging for air. Gasping lightly she opened her eyes to find Draco smiling at her.

"What?" She asked, turning her head in curiosity.

"I just thought of something." He smirked.

Ginny raised an eyebrow in question.

"Exactly what are we going as to the All Hallows Eve Ball?"

Ginny groaned. She'd forgotten they had another ball coming up soon. "How did you ever go to school and all these balls at the same time?" She asked, pouting.

Draco shrugged, loosening his tie and dropping his gray jacket on top of her clutch. "Most of the balls happened over breaks or something. That or I'd miss balls at Hogwarts for them."

Ginny frowned. "That doesn't seem fair."

Draco left a peck on her cheek as he kicked off his dress shoes. "No worries, I guess you didn't notice but most of the Slytherin house was absent for balls, all of them were at the parties my parents threw. It was always very important to keep up the right image." He explained. Ginny nodded, dropping her tired body onto his bed, kicking off her heels. She felt the bed depress beside her and an arm curl around her waist, pulling her close.

She smiled, eyes closed as she relaxed in Draco's embrace. "It's strange." She muttered.

"What is?" Draco replied into her hair.

"That after being enemies for so long we could fall into a relationship so easily."

Draco snorted. "I wouldn't call it easy; I had to deal with the gang bang before I could get to you."

Ginny spun around, appalled at his choice of words. "Gang bang?!"

Draco smirked. "Yeah, that's what we called your brother, scar head and that know-it-all Granger. We all figured they were so close they probably bedded each other at the same time."

Ginny nearly wretched on him. "That is the last image I want in my mind right now, thanks."

Draco pulled her down onto the bed and crawled on top of her. "Let me replace it with something more pleasant then…" He dragged his hands up her sides, kissing her deeply. Ginny's legs involuntarily wrapped around his waist as he did so, her hands massaging the planes of his back.

Draco began to kiss her more fervently and elicited a light moan from Ginny. Pleased with himself, he curled his hand around her leg, hooking it behind her knee and rubbing his hips against hers. Ginny pulled back and breathed heavily against his ear as he dropped kisses down her neck. "Is that your wand in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" She teased.

Draco grunted and drew back, pressing himself against her roughly. "Guess." His cracking voice made Ginny shiver. He dragged his lips down her collarbone to the cleavage he had full advantage of taking. His hot breath nearly took Ginny's own away and she reached her hands up to tangle in his hair. Eyes closed she secretly wanted to be as intimate and passionate as possible with him. It didn't make sense to her that after less than twenty four hours she was ready to give herself up to him.

As a hand came up to massage her left breast, Draco's lips covering hers, Ginny questioned whether Draco would respect her if she did in fact let anything more than snogging happen.

And then the mood was gone. Pushing him back as his fingers played with the collar of her top she pushed herself back away from him. "Maybe we shouldn't move so fast."

"Why not, is everything alright?"

"Yes it's just…" She looked away, not wanting to bring it up. Not wanting to know that she thought he'd lose respect for her.

"What?" He pulled her hands to his lips and encircled her in an embrace. "Ginny, tell me what you were thinking."

Ginny bit her lip and gave in, trusting that the truth would yield what was best for her anyways. "It's just we haven't been an actual couple for more than a day and it seems… sudden for you to be grabbing me all over the place like that I don't…" She couldn't finish the sentence.

"Ginny, I'm sorry if you don't feel the same way but I've been attracted to you since you stepped foot in my house. Quite frankly I feel like we've had months together, just took a long time to get physical that's all."

"I've liked you since then too." She admitted. She shook her head. "No!" She ripped herself from his arms and stood, fists at her sides. "Tell me this isn't your charm! Tell me this isn't just you being charming!"

Draco looked stunned. "How could you say something like that?"

"How could I not? Draco I've only had the past few months to erase years of history with you and even those past few months have been shrouded in banter and sarcasm!" Ginny blushed furiously, turning away from him. "I don't want to be just another girl Draco, I don't want that again."

"Ginny how in the world could you- Again? What in bloody hell is that supposed to mean?" He stood, twisting Ginny around to look at him. "In Merlin's name tell me you did not just compare me to Blaise." His voice was icy and Ginny shivered.

She shook her head, looking down. "No." Her eyes stung with tears.

"Then who?"

She turned away from him again, arms crossing her chest. "I don't want to talk about it."

Draco threw his hands up in frustration. "Dammit Ginny if we don't talk about it then I'll be pissed and you'll be pissed and that doesn't do well for a relationship! You have to talk to me!"

"You actually care about us?" Ginny whispered. "This?"

Draco fumed but walked around her so he could look at her straight on. Tipping her chin up, he saw the tears down her cheeks and wiped them away. "How can someone so smart be so stupid?" He sighed. "Ginny, trust me, if I didn't care I wouldn't have let you stay in this room after practically running away from me and accusing me of treating you like just another girl. If I didn't care about you I would've thrown you into the hallway and told you to deal with your own damn problem."

Ginny looked down, not sure what to think about what he had just said to her.

"Dammit Ginny you've got to understand this okay? So listen to me and look at me, look at me so you know I'm not lying."

She looked up into his eyes and bit her bottom lip.

"Ginny, you make me nervous. You make me very nervous. That's why I was always so rude to you at dinner and such. I didn't know how to act around you and I resorted to being mean. I know I was being a prat and I fully admit I'm damn good at it but I'm also sorry." He paused. "And as for being charming, never would I try to coerce you into doing anything you didn't want to do."

Ginny smiled. "But that's the problem isn't it?"

Draco frowned. "What is?"

Ginny brought her gaze to his, tears gone. She dropped her arms and took his hands into hers. "I do want to."

((A/N: The cliffhanger: noun, authorial insurance that readers will come back for more…))


	12. Ch11: Crash Into Me

Title: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike. Title of the chapter is a Dave Mathews Band song, don't sue me.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** M rating definitely applies here. Please keep in mind what M means. When the smut kicks in you may follow the link I have provided to the remainder of the chapter. I have moved it to ensure that everything I have posted is tip-top with fanfic regs.

**Author's Note: **Enjoy reading this because the real hold up in this chapter and the last was making sure I wrote this whole scene right. You readers are so lucky you have an author who cares…

_Chapter Eleven: Crash Into Me_

Draco just stared at her for a moment, not knowing what to do next. This had to be the first time in his entire life that he was genuinely unable to think of something to say or do. So instead, he just stared down at her, waiting for her to do something.

Ginny rubbed his palms with her thumbs and she knew she'd have to break the ice of what she'd just said. Sighing, she sat down on the couch next to the bed and patted the place beside her for Draco to sit. He did so numbly, never taking his eyes off of her.

"Draco, I'm not hesitant to be with you because I don't want to. I do, I really do. I want to so much that it kind of scares me. I've really," She blushed, embarrassed about the fact that she was admitting being so preoccupied about being intimate with him. "I've never thought about that so much. Not with anyone else." She looked up at him through her thick lashes. "Except you."

Draco opened his mouth to say something but found no words and closed it. He felt his chest rise and fall, his heart race behind his ribcage and his hands break into a sweat. What was she doing to him? What was this vice she had on his heart?

"I'm scared both of you and me. I'm scared of you because I know you're no virgin and I know you can be cruel, but I'm more scared because I know now that there are times when you're really sweet." She paused and bit her bottom lip. "And I started to wonder which Draco I was going to get in the end. Whether I really was dating someone who felt for me the same I felt for him or if…" She looked away.

"Or if I'd use you for sex then leave you." He finished for her bluntly.

She nodded.

Draco ran his hands through his hair, elbows on his knees. "I wish I could say that you had the wrong idea about me, and you do, but you have reason to." He situated himself on the couch so he was looking at her. "Ginny, whenever I was with another girl I didn't just shag them and leave them. I did want to see if there was a relationship there. It just so happened there wasn't. You know, my longest relationship was two months and that was Pansy."

Ginny halfway snorted. "I'm surprised it lasted two months."

Draco smirked. "Me too. But I'm really not a shag and run kind of guy, Ginny. You have to believe me when I say that." He leaned back against the arm of the couch. "I'd say ask Crabbe or Goyle but quite frankly I'd rather you never be around them. Blaise would've known but…" He clenched his jaw. "If he ever even looks at you again I'll kill him." Draco looked back at Ginny, a wild darkness in his eyes. "I'm serious, I'll kill him."

Ginny wondered if he really was serious, she'd believe it with the way he was looking at her right now.

"I know that the other houses didn't really spread the best of rumors about me. Why would they? I was an ass in school, I'll be the first to admit that. It wasn't until I was forced to be home so much I realized exactly how much I was acting like my father." When he said this Ginny swore he was about growl like lion. His nose scrunched up in disgust and he bared his teeth. "When it came to me sleeping around, what they said wasn't true. Yeah, I had a couple of partners, I've slept with six girls. But all of them I was with for at least two weeks before we broke up… we were always official when I slept with them. I never slept with a girl I wasn't dating."

Ginny felt her muscles relax. She knew he was telling the truth and she was happy to hear this from him, she needed to hear this from him. "Draco." She reached for his hand and brought it to her cheek, rubbing it against her skin. She could hear him gasp slightly and saw him blush. She loved being able to make him blush. Leaning forward she left a kiss to his lips and smiled sadly. "When I said again earlier, I wasn't talking about Blaise."

Draco sat up straighter. "Who were you talking about?"

Ginny looked down at the couch cushions then back up to Draco. Her eyes were sparkling with tears. "Harry." She said through a breathless sob.

Draco felt that spark of jealousy and hatred turn into a raging fire inside him. So, not only did Harry ruin his life during school but he had taken the pleasure in ruining his life outside of it too. "How could you be an 'again' for him?" Draco sputtered. "That idiot could barely figure out where his hands were."

Ginny tried not to laugh but couldn't help it. "When Harry and Cho were dating they slept together. And when they broke up Harry and I…" She trailed off.

Draco went white in his face. "Please tell me he wasn't your first."

Ginny frowned and wrapped her arms around her body. "What if he was?" She was hurt that he would say something like that. Didn't he know that this was a sensitive subject?

Draco pouted. "It's a crime, that's all. That blundering idiot having the pleasure of being your first time… that's something that really should've been left to someone more worthy of your time…"

"I'm not a trophy, Draco!"

"I didn't mean it like that!" Draco huffed. "I meant that Harry is by far the least…" He growled. "He's just an idiot! He doesn't appreciate you the way I do! Someone's virginity is special, it's something that shouldn't just be given up and I highly doubt that he treasured you like he should have!" He snapped, standing and nearly knocking the table over.

Ginny watched him with wide eyes. He was mad because Harry didn't respect her enough? _Well, that answers the question of whether or not Draco would respect me._ She smiled at him as he paced back and forth in his anger.

"So why the hell did you date him for so long then? If he was such an asshole why did you stay with him?" Draco asked, back to Ginny as he stood, hands on his hips.

Ginny shrugged even though Draco couldn't see. "Why did you stay with Pansy?"

"It's not fair to answer with another question." Draco muttered, turning back to her, calmed down. He returned to the couch and sat beside her, elbows on his knees as he glared at the table. Ginny had a feeling that if for some reason Harry were to walk in Draco would rip his head off.

"I stayed with him because I thought I couldn't get anything better than the one and only Harry Potter." She said the last bit with sarcasm. "I had been crushing on him for a long time and even though I'd dated Dean, and Michael, and Neville there for a while, and-"

"I really don't want to think about all of the boys you've dated." Draco shivered.

Ginny raised an eyebrow. "At least I only slept with one of them."

Draco scowled.

"I'm sorry," Ginny sighed. "I shouldn't have said that. I just don't like knowing the fact that you've slept with six other girls before me, either."

Draco nodded, his scowl dropping. "So is that how you meant again? Cause Potter…" He couldn't finish the sentence.

"No actually," Ginny ran her fingertips across the grain of the table. "Afterwards he called me Cho and left me in his bed to go find her."

"He did _what_?!" Draco stood, this time he really did knock the table over, scattering the magazines and remote batteries across the floor.

Ginny sniffled. "He had slept with me to get over her and when he found out he wasn't he went to go find her. She turned him down on getting back together and that's why he asked me out."

"And you stayed with him?!" Draco was in complete disbelief, when he called her stupid earlier he didn't know how right he was.

"I didn't know the last part until we broke up okay! I thought he just called me her name by accident and got embarrassed and left. I didn't know he went to go find her and nobody bothered to tell me about it either." Ginny was standing now, staring Draco right back.

Draco swallowed down the dryness in his throat. If there were ever a time he wanted Potter around, now was it. And it wasn't to preserve his life. Something occurred to Draco as he stood there, looking deeply into Ginny's dark eyes. "Do you think I'm too good for you?" Draco asked.

Ginny stepped back, surprised by his sudden change in topic. Pursing her lips she nodded.

Draco sighed and wrapped her tightly in his arms. "Dammit, Gin, you should know by now I'm cocky enough to only date people I think are worth it." He felt Ginny snort within his grasp. Loosening his hold he saw her look up at him and automatically he knew that if anyone ever hurt he'd murder them with an Unforgivable, no matter what the sentence.

"Draco I'm sorry, I know now that I should've just trusted you but I was scared." She pressed her cheek against his chest.

Draco set his chin on the top of her head, rubbing her back gently. "I don't blame after what that coward did." He paused. "Why were you scared of yourself?"

Ginny looked up at him, confused. "What?"

"You said you were scared of both me and you, why were you scared of yourself?"

Realization crossed Ginny's face and a deep blush quickly followed. "Because…" She trailed off, hiding herself in Draco's arms.

"Because what?" Draco couldn't help the twitch at the outer edges of his lips.

Ginny sighed lightly, running her hands up and down his chest. "Because if we started I don't know if I'd stop myself. I told you I want this as much as you do, and it scares me. It scares me that I've never wanted to do… _that_… so much. I'm just not used to it and I don't know if I'll be any good or if I'll be loud or kick you by accident or…"

"You're mental." Draco stared down at her with his eyebrows raised.

"I've had a lot of time to be paranoid." She shrugged.

"Ginny." Draco's tone told her he was thinking of something. Looking up into his eyes she saw a tempest behind them. "I know you say you want to, but if you want to wait we will."

Ginny held her breath, thinking. "I'd rather not, really." Her blushing cheeks and fingertips on his belt loops told him all he needed to know.

(((The rest of the chapter can be found here:

http : / gnatrat . livejournal . com /

KEEP IN MIND!! Fanfiction will not let me post a direct link that means I have put spaces between all the hyphens and words in the link!! You HAVE to take out every space in the link in order for it to work!!)))


	13. Ch12: Return to the Snake Pit

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Okay, for those of you who were disposed to not read the smut of last chapter, they basically sexed it up, said they loved each other, and fell asleep naked. Slight M-age in this chapter as well. Be warned. Also, this is what I call a "transition chapter" it's what happens after the charrie's get together and it's filled with general mundane happenings that make author's hate them. Don't worry, there's something in this chapter that will keep that good ol' plot ball a-rolling!! Sorry for shortness.

**Author's Note: ** _In response to the reviews:_

_Draco turned the lights out so Ginny would be experiencing everything purely based on surprise sensation. The time it took to do it was short because, well, when with a girl like that it also doesn't take long to get done… _

_It is meant to say that Seamus thought she was flirting with Ron cause Seamus was so paranoid and crazy that he thought she was flirting even with her own brother._

_I had my own concerns about the timing of that intimate of an action but I just had to think, two older teenagers with pent up sexual frustration and a looooooong time to get to know each other I figured they'd actually be jumping at the chance. That and I always pictured them both as passionate, physical creatures. I know, I know, everyone says "Ginny? Physical?" Well think about it, she's a Weasley (fiery redhead), she's a girl in the midst of dating, she IS a passionate person (could turn into physical expression), and to top it all off she wants to be seen more as a woman and less like a girl. That's my reasoning anyways…_

_Chapter Twelve: Return to the Snake Pit_

Ginny woke to the insistent beeping of the alarm clock. Refusing to open her eyes she swatted at Draco's motionless form. "Draco… Draco, the alarm." Her only response for the time being was a soft murmur. Groaning, apparently more prone to annoyance by alarm than the sleeping boy beside her, she rolled over and reached across Draco's body to hit the snooze button herself.

Drawing back she felt fingertips on her bare breasts and jumped, nearly falling off the bed. Looking down she could see Draco smirking with his eyes closed. Scowling Ginny smacked his hand and turned her back to him as she lay down.

She then, to add insult to injury, shoved a pillow between Draco's crotch and her bum.

"You're no fun." He whined letting his arm rest in the dip of her waist.

"You're a pervert." She replied, finding the groove in the pillow she once occupied.

"I'm your boyfriend, I'm allowed."

She smiled at the word. _Boyfriend_, yes, Draco was her boyfriend. "Mmm, that's nice." She whispered lightly, the fingers of the sandman covering her eyes and drawing her once more into dreamland.

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Seven and a half minutes later Ginny had successfully removed the alarm clock from the table, chunking it across the room. Grumbling about devilish Muggle inventions, there was a knock on the door. Groaning, she patted Draco's leg, the pillow between them mysteriously missing. "Your turn."

Sighing, Draco rose up out of the bed and quickly found his boxers. Slipping them on he made his way to the door to find another owl waiting for them. Grabbing it off the floor and shutting the door behind him he walked to the window and drew back the curtains for light.

"We've got an owl." He stated, starting to open it.

"Read it in the dark, close the curtains." Ginny called from her place face-down in one of the pillows. "Sleepy time…" She sighed, shielding her eyes from the unwelcome light.

"Come on love, we've got to get up to leave for home today." Draco scanned the owl.

Ginny groaned. "Home will be there even if I get an extra fifteen minutes of sleep." She argued. Finding no mercy with Draco she threw back the covers and sat up in the bed, rubbing her eyes. She already missed the feel of the warm sheets around her and the comforting grip of sleep.

"We'll be leaving in three hours, you'd better wash up and pack." He threw the owl down on the windowsill. Looking over his breath caught in his throat at the sight of her. Last night he hadn't properly had the chance of seeing her fully. With the morning light on her back he saw more clearly the definition of her curves, the creamy color and smooth texture of her skin, the dotting of freckles across her back and the vibrancy of her red hair.

Smiling he went into the bathroom, pouring into two small paper cups equal shares of mouthwash. Filling his mouth with it, he swished it about until he was sure he tasted like spearmint and spit it into the sink, rinsing his mouth with water as it tingled from the alcohol. Turning he went to the room and to the bed where Ginny sat. Handing a cup to her he smiled. "Maybe this will substitute for brushing your teeth."

His raised eyebrow indicated ulterior motives but Ginny was still in too much of a morning fog to care. Taking it, she swished it. Walking into the bathroom she spit it into the sink and repeated Draco's process until she was happy that she didn't smell like morning breath any longer. Looking up from the sink basin she saw Draco standing behind her leaning up against the door frame. "You're gorgeous, you know." He said simply, cheeks tinged with pink.

Ginny smiled and turned, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissing him lightly on his lips.

He was amazed at how someone so insecure about so many things could walk around naked. She baffled him and he loved it. Love her.

Reaching down, not breaking the kiss, he turned the shower on. He felt Ginny's hands push down his boxers and was sure she was thinking what he was thinking.

After a few moments, ensuring the water was freezing, they untangled their limbs to climb into the tub together. Ginny was first to scrub her hair and body down with shampoo and soap, sorry that they didn't have the stuff that made her hair shiny and silky. All the same it worked and she was okay with that. Draco spent this time running kisses where her skin wasn't covered with suds, hands roaming her body.

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(((BOOO! I as the author warn you of impending smut, just scroll down until you see another message like this and you can bypass the whole thing)))

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They switched when she was done and Ginny did exactly as Draco had, running her hand up and down his length as he bathed. Turning once he was washed off he pulled Ginny to him, the warm water providing a slick layer on their skins.

They snogged for what seemed like forever until Draco decided to have some fun. Plunging his hand between her thighs he used his fingers to bring her to climax. Ginny's back to the cool tile wall, leg wrapped around his thigh, she moaned loudly into his chest. Smiling, Draco poised her against him and pressed inwards. Ginny stiffened in his arms. "What's wrong?" He asked, voice cracking with desire.

"I'm a little sore." She hissed as he filled her entirely. "And… what about that spell you cast?"

Draco scowled. He had forgotten about that. "Hold on, don't get out." He commanded, rushing from the bathroom to get his wand. It took him a few minutes to find it hidden beneath the window air conditioning unit and he nearly lost himself in the cold of the room.

Casting the spell he returned to the warm confines of the shower stall and reassumed his position. For moments on end they were suspended in an intimate bliss until Draco came and they found the heat of the small room and the exhaustion of their activities too much to bear together.

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(((You didn't miss much, just shagging, continue reading)))

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Ginny was wrapped in the largest towel, mainly because she complained about the chilly temperature of the room more than Draco did. Draco was able to cover most of his lower half with what he was left with. "Dammit." Ginny muttered, gathering up her clothes from the night before. "I should've brought over a spare set."

Draco rolled his eyes. "It's not like you knew we were going to shag. Anyways, they aren't that dirty just wear them back over to your room, change and pack, and come back over here so we can cuddle." He cooed, wrapping his arms around her body. Since having a taste of her lips he had been insatiable.

Ginny sighed. "But now that I've showered, it'll feel weird putting on previously worn clothes, like I'll be getting all dirty again." She frowned and he took her pouting lips in his.

"Then let me get dressed, I'll go get you some clothes and you can just stay here."

"Deal!" She nodded, kissing him again.

Draco paused in his thinking as realization dawned on him. "Is that what you wanted all along?"

Fighting back a smirk, Ginny shrugged and ran to the bed where she buried herself beneath she sheets once more. "Warm…" She murmured, cocooning herself in the sheets. Draco rolled his eyes and fished a pair of boxers out of his trunk, pulling them on. Looking over at Ginny's small form curled up in the covers there was something that overcame him, a complete sense of ownership.

Ginny was his and if anyone ever touched her or messed with her, well, they'd find out just how unpleasant Draco could be. Pulling on a pair of pants he crossed the hall and was back within minutes with an outfit for Ginny.

Setting the clothes on the couch he sat on the bed beside her. Looking down he picked up his hand, brushing away the fire-red strands of hair that had fallen in her face. She was so beautiful and the Malfoy he had been in Hogwarts was quickly losing the fight with the Draco he had become.

Yes, when it came to Ginny "Malfoy" was who he had been in school, the prat. "Draco" on the other hand was who he was now, this young man that, well, loved her. It was an odd thought to him, that he had these strong feelings for someone, this was all new to him. All the girls he had been with before were nice, smart, pretty (well most of them) and he had always had feelings for them but nothing like this. Nothing close.

She moved around and opened her eyes. Smiling down at her, she smiled back, and he leaned down to place a kiss on her forehead. "Got your clothes."

Ginny stretched and made a squeaking noise. "Mmm, good servant." She said, wrapping her arms around his midsection, laying her head on his lap.

Draco, rolling his eyes, stroked her hair lovingly for a few moments before prompting her to get dressed. Ginny rolled out of bed and pulled her clothes out of the ball Draco had wrapped them into. Separating her underwear and outerwear, she pulled on her panties (which Draco commented about somewhere around a dozen times before she finally threatened to hex him if he didn't shut up) followed by her bra and a pair of black knee length stockings.

Draco felt his mouth go dry. It was baffling to him how she could continually change her appearance into something more and more attractive. It seemed that the more she put on clothes the more he wanted her to remove them. Pulling himself up from the couch, he crossed the room and walked into the bathroom where she was curling her hair.

"Huh, I thought you're hair was curly already." He dragged his fingertips down her spine.

Ginny smiled. "It is, but sort of like Hermione's, I still have to curl it to look good." She moved the curling iron so she could get to the back of her hair. "Don't try anything funny, one slip up and I'll burn your face off." She raised an eyebrow and smirked.

"Duly noted." Draco nodded and move to her left. He knelt down and placed his hands on her stomach and butt. "I'll keep down here then."

Ginny blushed, not really knowing what it was he was going to do. She frankly wasn't excited about the idea of Draco making her jump and her burning herself with that damn contraption. She had managed to get one from Hermione some time ago for when she went on vacations with her family to America, because of her age she wasn't allowed to use magic, but the curling iron did the trick. However, she had burnt herself quite a few times in learning and wasn't eager to repeat that mistake.

Draco trailed kisses down her side, tickling Ginny but not so much that she would lose control. He dragged his hands up and down her thighs, tasting the flesh of her hip as he pulled down on her panties. Surprisingly Ginny parted her legs slightly, allowing him to pull them down easier. Draco looked up at her reflection in the mirror but she was avoiding his gaze. Smirking, he stroked the inside of her thigh until she was done with her hair.

"Draco, I thought I was supposed to be getting _dressed_ not _un_dressed." Ginny pouted and put her hands on the counter as she looked down at him.

Draco just shrugged and stood, placing his hands on either side of hers, rubbing his hard-on against her bum. "But every time you do I get reminded of why you got naked in the first place." He purred into her ear. Slowly Ginny's eyes closed and she leaned into him, letting his hands graze her stomach.

He lifted her up onto the counter and they had another go. Rather, they had another go there, then they moved into the bedroom where Ginny insisted she really _did_ have to get dressed, but Draco provided enough persuasion against that. Ginny, a little irritated at her lack of will, finally got her jeans on before deciding to seek revenge. After giving Draco a painful case of blue-balls (even the Slytherin sex-fiend Malfoy has his limits), she finished getting dressed.

They looked around the room for their things, Draco having already retrieved his wand found nothing else worth finding if he had lost it, so they moved to Ginny's room where she gathered her clothes together and they set off for the lobby.

Deciding it best to eat before the trip home, they left their trunks with a bellhop and went to the restaurant in the hotel. Draco complained off an on about Ginny's revenge, stating that "it was simply far too unfair that a girl could do that to a boy and not vice versa" but quieted once the waitress finally came around. Ginny ordered waffles, Draco eggs benedict, and all was going well until Ginny choked on her hot chocolate.

Draco cocked a brow. "What?" He turned and nearly shattered the glass of orange juice in his hand. Turning back he was visibly fuming. "He follows you _everywhere_."

Ginny blushed and shrugged, smiling in apology. "I don't like it anymore than you do."

Draco laughed sardonically. "I bet you hired him to stalk you so I'd get jealous and admit I liked you."

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yes that's exactly what happened, while you were bleeding out of the top of your head, face down in the swimming pool, I snuck him some American money and asked him to stalk me. Draco, you are a genius for seeing through my guise."

Draco muttered about her insolence. "Damn right." Ginny discerned before Jared walked up to them.

"Ginny! Hey, I thought you'd be gone by now. Hey, uh…" Jared blinked with loss of Draco's name.

"Draco." Draco nearly hissed, setting his glass down before he could break it. "And we had to postpone our return home, late night, you know how it goes." Draco smiled.

If Ginny could have shrunk herself and drowned in her hot chocolate she would have at that very moment. Jared just pursed his lips, nodded, said a few last words and a goodbye to Ginny and disappeared among the lunch crowd. Shaking her head she let her forehead fall into her palm. "You drive me bonkers."

Draco merely shrugged and sipped at his orange juice until their food came. Conversation stilled as both found that they had worked up quite an appetite between dinner the night before and this meal. Although, it didn't surprise either of them all that much. Draco made a comment about the weight-loss benefits of sex and Ginny kicked him beneath the table.

"What?"

"Not in public Draco, really."

"Oh, now you're the one schooling me on how to act in public?"

The banter was mixed between stuffing their poor, hungry faces and paying the tab. They walked into the lobby after and were quickly picked up from the driver.

----------------

They met up with Narcissa outside of Lee's and arranged the portkey. The goodbyes between Narcissa and Lee had obviously been done in private and as they swished through the sky Ginny could see a fleeting expression on Lee's face that told of the love that could not fully be expressed. Saddened, she let the portkey take her to the manor and they landed in the same place they had left from.

Their trunks were magicked up the stairs by the house elves and Narcissa requested to hear their stories about America. They told her about the pool, Draco hitting his head (at which Narcissa leaned forward and ran her fingertips over the cut, a particularly sweet moment to Ginny), the American's they had met (which really, Ginny had met and Draco had loathed), the breakfast that morning and nothing more. Truly, nothing else had to be conveyed.

Narcissa dismissed them and went about some business. Before returning to their rooms, Ginny and Draco decided to take a walk through the garden. Draco took Ginny's hand into his once they got to the fountain and for a few moments all they did was walk in silence, fingers entwined.

Passing a variety of flowers, Ginny thought she would love to start planting in the box on her porch, possibly even some of the flowers here in the garden. "What are you thinking about?" Draco asked.

Ginny shook herself free from her thoughts and smiled. "Just gardening, I used to do it with Mum a lot but now I don't really get a chance, I don't have seeds or anything like that. I'd love to garden in that box I've got on the patio but I don't feel like I have the time." She shrugged and looked around again.

Draco stopped and their grasp tugged her back. "What?" She asked, curious as to why he halted so immediately. A smile played on his lips and Ginny raised her eyebrows.

"Follow me." He pulled her along as he crossed a few paths Ginny had never been on before, hidden behind bushes or trees. After dodging thorny foliage and other protruding flora, Ginny looked up at the building she had been brought to.

It was a giant greenhouse and inside she could see gardening equipment and other assorted necessities lining the walls. "The house elves use this as storage but you can take some things from here."

Ginny's lips were parted as she walked into the humid structure and looked around. She turned back to Draco and he nodded in assurance. She was off, gathering up assorted things to make her dream garden become a reality. She took only a few minutes but as she came back to Draco things were spilling out of her filled arms. "Help?" He smiled adorably.

Draco assisted her with getting the things back up to her room and was called off to unpack, Lucius would be returning that night and was bringing guests with him. Ginny hated this. She had thought the first night back from America would have been relaxing but this made her think otherwise. She had noticed Draco was usually in a worse mood with his father around, Ginny wasn't particularly eager to see Lucius again (especially after knowing what he did to Narcissa), and to top it all off Lucius didn't know about her and Draco yet.

She wondered if it would be wise to inform him of their relationship, knowing that he more than anyone she had ever known hated Weasley's. The thought of his only son and child dating one would make him squirm. Ginny knew that he wouldn't be able to hurt her without hurting Narcissa but quite frankly she didn't know whether that mattered any.

Realization hit Ginny in the face as she stopped in the hall. She really was in the snake's nest now. Lucius could probably care less about Narcissa's death and the thought that killing Ginny would take care of his wife too wasn't a terrible prospect to a man like him. Feeling sick to her stomach Ginny hurried to her room and hid beneath her covers until she felt safe enough to emerge.

Hoping to distract herself, Ginny began to unpack her trunk which Draco had helped pack and clearly should never do again. Smiling at even the smallest memento of his presence, Ginny began sorting through her things.

It hadn't taken Ginny long before she was finished unpacking her things and closed the top of the trunk. It closed with a "thud" and she sighed, looking around. She would never have thought she would miss the Manor so much. It seemed like the time in America served a number of purposes.

One, it brought her and Draco closer together on many new levels. Two, the mystery of Narcissa started to unravel when Ginny learned about Lee. Day by day the woman was becoming more and more human in Ginny's eyes, regardless of the tyrant she was during lessons. And three, it had solidified her place in Malfoy Manor.

Narcissa wouldn't have brought her on the trip if she hadn't trusted her. Lucius hadn't been at the Manor, he had gone on some sort of trip, and Draco could have easily remained at the Manor as well.

Ginny almost shuddered at the thought of Lucius. She was not looking forward to dinner that night and prayed that she be stricken with some sort of temporary and painless illness to keep her in bed for the night.

Returning to her thoughts of the trip, not wanting to dwell on Lucius (for he would certainly spoil her mood), Ginny thought that she simply could have been left behind and not included in that part of Narcissa's life, but she had been. Also, Ginny was now certain that although the Burrow was her heart, the Manor was now her home (even if Lucius was there too).

She sighed, she couldn't overlook the night coming up.

Looking around, her room soothed her. It was familiar and comforting. She remembered when she had first seen it, waking up after the Ministry attack, and felt like she was in a foreign country altogether. Now it was as if she had walked into some mix of her room from Hogwarts and her room at the Burrow.

The thought of the Burrow tugged at her heartstrings and she willed herself not to cry again. Besides, she had lessons with Narcissa.

Picking up her things from the table she went into the hallway and down the staircase. Narcissa had said to meet her in the drawing room before studies so they could look over the news. Narcissa always liked Ginny to stay up with current events. 'A lady of society is always well-informed even on the most gruesome things, they let you make good decisions, especially about who you keep company,' Narcissa would say.

Ginny took the last few steps in one and turned the corner to find she was staring directly into the face of Severus Snape.


	14. Ch13: All Hallows Eve

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike. (See this chapter's note for further elaboration).

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Alright, I have some splainin' to do. Since before the close of the HP series I've had my own deductions as to why things happened the way they did, in fact I had incorporated it into the plot of this story. It just happens to be that JK and I feel the same way about Snape. For lack of energy to argue that I had this idea before the last book was released, all similarities to the HP series are hereon out due to the fact that I am writing this during the time of the seventh book and it just so happens I chose to have my plot coincide at times with that of JK's.

In short, if it follows the HP series attribute that to JK and her fantastic mind and not to mine.

**Author's Note: ** Hopefully this chapter will be a more enjoyable read, it was certainly more fun to write. I call this the "puzzle chapter" because all the pieces start to fall into place and the places where information is missing become more… informed… Also… my first fic to go 100+ reviews!!! Cookies for all of you!

_Chapter Thirteen: All Hallows Eve_

Ginny recoiled in fear at the sight of her former potions master. It wasn't that she was afraid of him as a person but after everything that had happened with Dumbledore, she wasn't all that eager to get close to him.

Her senses finally kicked in and in seconds he was gone. He had appeared in the fire just as Sirius had done so many nights with Harry back at Hogwarts. She had only seen him for a few moments but it was as if he had been standing in the room with her.

She wasn't sure but the look on his face, where she expected menace and cold, had reflected surprise and almost fear.

It had only been a flash but she had seen it. After he disappeared Ginny stood there for some time staring into the flames as they threw shadows and figures against the brick surround.

When Narcissa's footsteps stopped at the entrance Ginny knew that there was something going on, something with Snape that she shouldn't know about, but something she was sure to know after this.

There was a silence in the room before Narcissa crossed to her desk and sat. Ginny watched her set her hands out on the desk, palms down, a sign of not being armed.

Ginny dropped down into the chair opposite the desk from Narcissa. She crossed her feet beneath the chair and entwined her fingers, bracing herself for what was to come.

Narcissa's ice cold eyes bore into Ginny with a ferocity Ginny was afraid of. "Ginny, what I tell you must never be repeated to anyone, am I understood?"

Ginny nodded her head in reply. "Yes." She whispered voice unable to reach a higher volume.

Narcissa turned her head slightly, measuring Ginny before finally nodding. "You must understand Ginny; things are not always what they seem. I told you that I married Lucius for many reasons, none of them involving love."

Ginny nodded, expressing that she followed Narcissa's point. Narcissa was not on the side of the Death Eaters by choice, in fact, she wasn't even part of them. Many times Ginny had seen the woman's forearm and not once was there sign of the dark mark.

"Ginny I do not agree with the Death Eaters. That alone could have me killed and I believe you're smart enough to understand that. As the wife of a prominent Death Eater I must side with them or lose my life, it is too much of a risk to have someone that close and not have them involved."

"But…" Ginny's mouth moved before she could think about her words. "Wouldn't you have the dark mark by now?"

Narcissa sneered. "Yes, I should, you're right." Ginny pondered this response; it wasn't actually an answer to her question.

Ginny waited.

"Ginny, I'm dying." 

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Ginny stared up at her ceiling. The conversation with Narcissa had stunned her into what seemed like an eternal silence and she was excused for the day to recuperate. Draco had come calling and she'd told him she was sick, she felt terrible for lying but she wasn't ready to talk to him about everything that she had learned. Narcissa had expressed that Ginny was her confidante, now that she had seen Snape she must know it all and keep it secret.

Ginny hadn't been entirely sure what Narcissa needed to keep so secret but after the woman had gotten done explaining everything Ginny was well aware that what Narcissa knew could never be told.

Why had Ginny been chosen for her confidante? What had made Ginny worthy? Maybe it wasn't that she had been chosen, but instead, she had walked into it unawares and could not leave without knowing the whole story. She wondered if she had the whole story. Were there still things Narcissa had left out?

Ginny struggled with her thoughts. Was that why Narcissa had told her about Lee? Because she was dying? Did she want to make sure that if it happened overseas that Lee would find out? That he would know his love had passed on?

Furthermore, Ginny's relationship with Draco only seemed to complicate things a great deal. She would normally burst into his room and spill her guts (or at least she would with her other boyfriends and felt she would treat him with the same secrets she would have the others), but the fact that it was Narcissa who had told her not to tell Draco…

"_Not until he's ready, Ginny, you can't tell him until he's ready to know…"_

Ginny was so lost and her head swam with the secrets and questions she was now to bear until Draco was ready to bear them too. Ginny slipped into a restless sleep and didn't wake up until the next morning.

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Narcissa tapped her thin fingertip on the wood of her desktop. Ginny had taken everything well that morning when they had spoken, or as well as anyone could have responded to what she had been told. Narcissa had wanted to explain only a few of those things to her, omitting her condition, but found that the only way the girl could have the answers she needed was to have all of the information.

Narcissa stood and crossed to the fireplace in her private office. This room was on the third floor in the family wing. Both she and Lucius had private offices and Lucius, fool of a man that he was, let Narcissa place locks on her doors that would keep out even him. His trust didn't extend far but the trust he did give her cost him dearly. It was through her private office, after placing silencing charms around all of the windows and doors, after securing that the house elves would not intrude, that Narcissa would sit on her knees in front of the fireplace and speak into its flames.

Kneeling as she had done so many times before, she drew her hand across the coals and within minutes a face appeared, the same face that had sparked the conversation she had with Ginny earlier that day.

"Severus…" Narcissa sighed in relief. "I was hoping I wouldn't have to send for you."

He nodded in reply and she saw the look she had feared, sadness and worry. "I didn't realize she was with you, I knew she had been moved but I didn't realize she was with you at the Manor." He stated, his cold voice softening through the cracks of the coal.

Narcissa smiled. She had known for quite some time that Severus deeply cared for the young Ginny Weasley. If he could have he would have taken her into the protection of his hiding place. He had always favored her among the children; she reminded him of Lily in the way that she was not overtly talkative but all the same would defend both her family and friends. She was loyal and brave as most Gryffindors were but she was sharp and clever like a Slytherin. His paternal concern for Ginny had most likely made him ashamed to have seen her so soon, when she still thought of him as a traitor.

"Yes, Minerva had come to me in return for my information and had asked me to take her in. She's been here for some months now; she and Draco are an item if you can believe it." She saw a smile cross the man's face. Another of his favorites had always been Draco. Severus was in fact, Draco's godfather.

"I suppose I should be surprised but I'm not." Severus commented quietly. "Narcissa I should apologize, I hadn't meant to be seen."

Narcissa shook her head. "Don't worry; I told her nearly everything, she needed to know anyways. You know Severus, she admires you. She told me you were her favorite teacher, even despite what she had perceived as the truth with Dumbledore she still spoke of you so highly. I think in a way she was relieved to learn the truth. I think she knew it all along."

Severus gave a pained smile and looked away quickly. "Minerva's here, I'll get her so you two can talk for a moment." Narcissa nodded and Severus' face melted into the coals and was gone. After a few seconds Minerva's face appeared in the flames, worried and careworn as it always was.

"Narcissa, is everything alright? Severus told me just now that you had to speak with Ginny about… about…"

Narcissa interrupted. "Minerva, everything's alright. I've told her about Severus and the truth of his actions, about my condition, but nothing more."

Minerva nodded. "Well I suppose it's for the better anyways, she would have needed to know in the future and what better time than the present? And Draco? Does he know any of this?"

Narcissa shook her head. The truth was she was deeply afraid of having to acknowledge the severity of her condition, which she would have to do in talking to Draco. She was afraid of what it would do to him, to know that his mother was dying. More so he didn't even know about Severus. All that he knew was that his godfather had saved him from killing a man and postponed his entanglement in the Death Eaters for another day.

"I don't know how to tell him, to be honest. I don't know how to tell him that all he's been taught is a lie and the only person who knows what to do about it that he'll listen to is about to die." She bit back the bitter tears that burned at her eyelids. She wouldn't cry after crying so many times.

"I'm so sorry Narcissa, I'll let you and Severus finish speaking." Minerva bid her farewell and left the fireplace to be replaced by Severus.

"Narcissa, before I go I have to know…" There was no need for him to finish the sentence. Narcissa knew what he was going to ask. He always asked it at the end of every conversation.

Narcissa sighed. It was a futile attempt on her part to avoid that question. "Two years."

There was no need to say anything more and the two bid their farewells. Narcissa watched as Severus disappeared and the coals went cold and dark.

Two years. She had two years.

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Ginny woke to the sound of a knock from her balcony. Outside it was dusk and the wind was blowing around the branches of nearby trees. Sitting up and pushing herself from the bed, she smiled as Draco came into view. Broom in hand, he rapped lightly on the glass once more before seeing he had finally woken her up. She reached up, unlocked the doors and walked out.

"I was wondering where you were, you shouldn't disappear like that, you'll make a man worry." His concern made Ginny's heart race in her chest. Blushing, she let him pull her into an embrace. After a moment of some rather wonderful snogging they parted. "I've got a surprise for you, hop on." They saddled onto his broom and with a last glance at her bedroom they lifted off from her balcony.

Oh, the feeling of flight. Right before the rider of a broom picks their feet up off of the ground there's a rush over every last inch of their body, like a jolt of electricity. Then as the broom slowly rises upwards adrenaline begins to pump through the veins and the rider is inflated with sheer joy. Just as they reach a good height to look down over everything below them it's as if nothing can hurt them, a sense of freedom.

Ginny loved to fly. She had been elated when she was chosen as a chaser for the Quidditch team. Practicing with her friends, flying about, all of this made the sport the supreme culmination of everything in life that made her happy. She hadn't flown in a while; in fact here on Draco's broom was the first time since she had been at the Manor that she had flown. And it was even before than since she had flown last.

It had been a little more than three weeks since their return to the Manor from America. Ginny and Draco's relationship, oddly enough, had done nothing but blossom in that time. Their dancing lessons proved to be distracted by playfulness and sexual innuendo, dinners were more enjoyable with comfortable conversation, and Lucius had been gone for quite some time. Ginny had only seen him two times for dinner since America and they were within the same week.

Narcissa and Ginny had barely spoken about Snape or the illness, Ginny was afraid to bring any of it up. She wanted to ask about Snape, how he was doing and where he was, but she didn't want to pry. More so, she wanted to know what Narcissa was ill with, was there anything that could help it? There had been many times when Ginny had tried to tell Draco but she couldn't bring herself to. That was something best left to Narcissa to tell. She couldn't even begin to imagine his outrage at Ginny being told and not he.

They circled the Manor and began descending over the rear of the property where the Malfoys owned fifty acres of land when Ginny saw what Draco had wanted to show her.

Beneath them tents were going up, lights being hung, lanterns being tied to tree branches and tables set up for the All Hallows Eve ball that was to happen the very next night.

Ginny and Draco had spent many an hour debating over their costumes, Draco had initially wanted to go as Harry with a bolt of lightening through his chest but Ginny protested, both for it's crudeness and for the fact that it would remind her too much of Harry. "It would ruin my night" she insisted and Draco dropped it.

They instead decided that Ginny would be a tree nymph and Draco would be a vampire. Ginny had tried her hardest to have them match but if Draco couldn't be a dead Harry Potter, he was going as a vampire. Ginny was simply not going as a vampire and decided on something more feminine.

Ginny's breath caught in her throat at the sight before her. Smiling, she wrapped her arms more tightly around Draco's waist and inspected where the ball was going to take place more closely. The trees were wrapped in assorted ornaments, the tents were shear on top so the dancers could see up to the stars should they choose to. The sides were swept into columns to create openings every twenty feet or so.

Ginny leaned forward and placed her lips against his ear. "Can we go down and see it up close?" Draco turned back, smiling at her slightly before pushing the broom to lower them to the ground. Setting his feet on the ground, Draco stood and helped Ginny off of the broom.

She took his hand and they moved forward. The house elves scattered about, magicking things into place. "I didn't think house elves could do magic here." Ginny observed.

Draco, arm protectively around her waist as they moved around, just smiled. "When Lucius isn't home mother lets them use magic to do their work. She figures it gets done quicker and with more accuracy than when they do it without."

Ginny nodded in agreement. "It doesn't make sense to make people who serve you so unhappy."

"They're not people." Draco corrected.

Ginny frowned. "No, but they're not emotionless or soulless either. They're bound to do a better job of work and be more loyal if they were treated properly."

Draco hummed his agreement or concession, Ginny didn't know which, and the subject was dropped.

As they crossed to the middle of the tent a house elf lifted the top of a box and released a mass of black and dark purple butterflies the glittered against the night sky. Gasping lightly, Ginny watched as they fluttered and flew about the top of the tent, never once leaving its boundaries. She assumed there was a magic wall put up to keep them in. The colors of the butterflies were beautiful despite their somber nature and took her breath away.

Draco, smiling like a fool, held Ginny close to him and they watched the butterflies glow beneath the lights above them for some time.

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The butterflies flitted across the starry background above them. They swirled around each other making patterns in the atmosphere of lights and reached out to the edges of the tent before pulling back in and flirting with the guests.

Ginny smiled and was pulled into a dip by Draco. Looking into his blue eyes she felt her face grow hot. He pulled her up and as the song ended the crowd around them applauded before mingling with each other.

Draco excused himself to get drinks for them and Ginny just looked around. This night was so much more different than the one at the beginning of the month. Where the last ball had been a combination of discovering what the Malfoy grand events were like and adjusting to the social strata around her, this one appeared to leave her alone with Draco.

Well, that was until she saw Pansy saunter over to Draco. Rolling her eyes in utter disgust and complete exhaustion with the girl, Ginny walked over to where Pansy stood eyeing Draco.

"Really I'm not interested- Ginny! Here…" Draco made his way around Pansy who was looking quite destitute at Draco's sudden lack of attention, and handed Ginny her drink.

"Thanks, I was just wondering what was taking you so long." Ginny smiled sweetly and took a sip. "Pansy I didn't know you had been invited." Ginny's eyes trailed across the girl she had done her best to avoid while in school.

Pansy had done a good job of tending to her hair (she had cut it too short and had begun taking hair growth potions to resolve the problem), but she still looked like a pug. She had somehow found out what Draco was and came dressed in full Victorian attire with gothic makeup and bite marks on her cleavage. Ginny gagged. As she felt Draco's arm snake around her waist Ginny smirked as Pansy went vividly livid.

It probably was a combination of the fact that Draco had his arm wrapped around Ginny in a possessive manner that had never been bestowed upon Pansy, and the fact that Ginny looked absolutely fabulous.

Ginny's outfit consisted of a dark emerald green sheer fabric which wrapped around her chest and torso like a corset. Beneath it was a thin green silk across her breasts to maintain her modesty. Her skirt clung to her body like leather and only reached her mid thighs but a sheer gold fabric was wrapped around it that fell to her knees and tied on her side. Her feet were bare but wrapped in the same emerald silk as her breasts. It wrapped around the arches of her feet, around her ankles, and up her calves until it tied off beneath her knees.

Pansy opened her mouth to say something, shut it, and then finally snapped "I'm always invited to Malfoy affairs." She turned and stomped off to her group of waiting gossipers. Ginny sighed and shook her head.

"One day, she will find a way of being less… Pansy. I feel it."

Draco snorted. "That's not very insightful, _everyone_ dies one day."

Ginny just shook her head again and laid her head on Draco's shoulder, reveling in the silky fabric of his costume.

Draco was not dressed traditionally. He wore a Tudor style white shirt; the sleeves were large around his upper arms but fitted at his forearms. He wore black form fitting pants which showed off his muscular legs and black riding boots. His teeth had been magicked to look like those of vampires with menacing fangs that made Ginny's stomach flip. He had agreed to her protests and let his hair down without gel.

Draco pulled her along to the outskirts of the tent before finally leading them down the path of the garden. They walked in silence, hands clasped, occasionally taking sips from their champagne flutes, and listened to the sounds of the night around them. The din of the crowd they had left was faint over the wind blowing through the tall oak trees. Their branches were strong but swayed in rhythm with the gusts of air making music with the leaves.

To their side the fountain bubbled, drawing them to the place where it all, in a roundabouts ways, began.

"You look beautiful." Draco muttered, eyes on Ginny's shoulder as they sat on the fountain's edge.

Ginny turned, shocked by his sudden seriousness. Blushing under the midnight starlight, she pushed a strand of red hair behind her ear. Draco's eyes surveyed her body for a moment before meeting hers. Leaning over, accidentally sending their glasses into the fountain, Draco pressed himself against her. Locking lips, they entwined their arms around each others body. Ginny's when about Draco's neck and his around her waist as he pulled her into his lap.

Ginny's heart raced, she loved it when he grabbed her suddenly and brought them into this euphoric type kiss. She had to admit there was something between them that caused the static in the air to turn into electricity that shocked their skin when they touched. Something between them made the world go quiet except for the quickened breaths they shared and the beating of their hearts. Something between them was magic and had nothing to do with their ability to perform magic.

Gasping as Draco pulled away from her lips and began to caress her neck with soft kisses, Ginny tipped her head to the side. "Draco…" She whispered lightly. Draco responded, pulling her even closer so she was nearly straddling him. "Draco…" She whispered again, hands weaving through his hair. "Draco! Ow!" Ginny pushed back on him and clapped a hand over her neck. Pulling it away she saw traces of blood on her palm.

Draco grinned. "Sorry, had to try them out." He shrugged and helped her up. "At least now we make sense." He offered.

Ginny rolled her eyes. "Yes, a vampire was just strolling through the woods one day and bit a nymph."

Draco took her hand and they started back for the tent. "Well, that's sort of how we happened."

Ginny thought about the truth in his words. It did seem that Draco would very undoubtedly be compared to a vampire, an aged creature on the prowl for its next prey. And Ginny very accurately portrayed a nymph, sometimes other-worldly, or at least lost in one, and innocent.

Nodding in agreement to Draco's words Ginny added, "Yes, but you didn't draw blood the first time."

Draco smirked. "I was just marking my territory."

Laughing Ginny hooked arms with him as they rejoined the crowd. "Oh, you dog, you."


	15. Ch14: Departure

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fair warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** This chapter starts the day after the Ball. The last part has very little dialogue but please don't just skim (I say that cause I'm so guilty of it…) You won't get the full affect of the scene without devoting attention to all of the little nuances and such.

They were just too happy weren't they? Well, I thought so anyway…

**Author's Note: ** Okay so here's what happened, finals week and lots of stress. Anyways, as p.s. to the chapter note: don't hate me please.

_Chapter Fourteen: Departure_

Ginny stabbed her eggs with her fork.

Why Lucius had to come home and ruin her day was beyond her, but he had done so and now sat to her right at the dining room table as they ate their breakfast. Draco casually glanced in Lucuis' direction then continued to eat. Ginny was in awe at his ability to sit at the same table with someone he loathed.

Ginny dabbed her mouth with her napkin and reached for her drink.

"I assume Ginevra's lessons are coming along?" Lucius' cold voice shocked Ginny for a moment into leaving her hand hovering over her glass for a second before picking it up. Looking to Narcissa she waited for the woman's reply.

"Of course." Narcissa nodded, eyebrow raised.

Ginny lifted her glass and cautiously took a sip. Why was Lucius so concerned about her lessons? They didn't effect him in any way and it wasn't as if she were important to any endeavor he might be involved in. She hoped.

"Good." Lucius nodded his approval and took to eating in silence once more. Breakfast ended and Ginny was dismissed before her lessons. Draco had been ordered to meet with Lucius so Ginny went to the garden.

She had made a plot for herself in the back of the garden next to the greenhouse. She had already filled her small patio box with pansies for the winter and needed more room to fully test her green-thumb. Smiling to herself she pulled open the door to the greenhouse, a squeak coming from the rusty door hinges. Small clouds of dust erupted where she removed the items she needed: hand shovel, watering can, gloves, hand held rake, and the flats of begonias she was going to plant.

She walked to her plot which she had cleared of any weeks before she had gone away to America. It had since been dotted with the pesky growth and sitting down with a sigh, feet beneath her bottom; she pulled them up and cast them aside. It was a rather relaxing procedure, gardening. It allowed her for once to disappear from the world around her, though since she and Draco had become a pair life in the Manor seemed much more tolerable. They had found themselves prone to scuffles on occasion but not any that lasted for a terrible period of time, usually ten minutes before one decided to call off the insanity and they reconciled.

She had finished planting her pansies when the door out to the garden slammed with unexplained rage. Jumping in the fear that it could be an attack she armed herself with the nearest took: the hand held rake. Waiting for her attacker to surface she wondered whether she had enough time to go for her wand. Her fears, however, were dashed when the rather unhappy form of Draco came into view.

She was about to ask him what was wrong when his eyes met hers and she knew no good news could come of this. Dropping her gardening device and discarding her gloves she barely had enough time to look up before she was pressed firmly to the nearest flat surface (the greenhouse wall) and was kissed harshly. As Draco's lips pulled back from her she had no time to ask questions when his mouth covered hers in another assault.

Things went on like this until he had her relatively disheveled, shirt unbuttoned, and flushed to her tippy toes, Pulling back he avoided her eyes and pressed his forehead to hers. "Draco, what's wrong?" She asked, brows knit in worry.

Draco exhaled deeply, lips pursed and jaw clenched. She had never seen him like this, so caught up in his emotions. He was usually calm and collected, in control of his emotions and easygoing. Now he seemed to suffer from a rage that made him unable to speak and meet her eyes. "Ginny, tell me you love me."

Ginny, taken aback by his demand nodded before registering that he wanted a verbal confirmation. They had been fairly open about the l-word and freely used it when they were in private. It wasn't to say that they were in love, but that they cared deeply for each other and had a strong attraction to each other. Ginny though couldn't help but wonder which love he wanted her to confirm at that very moment.

Regardless, she couldn't help but wonder as well if she didn't truly love him. He would be her first and she did believe that there was more than one out there. Meaning that if she and Draco did part ways later on down the line, it wasn't like he was her one and only. He would just be one of the greats. The thought of this made her nauseous though, and she decided to drop the thought of her and Draco not being together.

Pressing her palms to his heated cheeks, she left a gentle kiss to his lips. "I love you Draco Malfoy." She whispered and knew that in some way she really did mean it in the way they meant it in fairy tales. He really was extremely compatible for her, they enjoyed being around each other. He made her feel like no other boy could and quite frankly it scared and excited her all at once.

Draco pushed for another kiss and finally he pulled back. She wondered if an explanation would follow. And it did.

"Ginny, Lucius is sending me off to Death Eater training on the first of next month."

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Ginny watched as Lucius ate his food with ease at dinner that night. It disgusted her. Narcissa was at her wits end. Ginny had barely recognized the woman during their lessons today. She had been uncollected, stuttering, forgetful and finally had to cancel lessons for the day. From how she appeared at the dinner table her rest did little to soothe her frayed nerves. Ginny could only imagine how she must feel, so close to death but about to be so far from her only child.

To make matters worse, Narcissa was against the whole Voldemort thing in the first place. She had been paler than usual the whole day and avoided any talk of politics. Whenever Lucius had mentioned it at the beginning of dinner, Narcissa went into a slight coughing fit which silenced all conversation for the rest of the meal.

So there they sat, Draco staring at his food with such fury that it might set on fire at any moment. Narcissa, shaking but trying to appear composed. Lucius, calm, cool, and collected as per usual. And Ginny, so stunned that all she could do was go through the routine she had remembered for dinner. After at least half of the foot on everyone's plate was gone dinner finally ended and Draco pulled Ginny up to his room from the hallway.

Laying her down on the bed beside him, he wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close to his body. "Let's not talk tonight, let's just lay here." Usually at nights they would alternate rooms in which to lay and talk or snog or… other things. But tonight it was understood that the nearness of the other's body was enough to speak a thousand words.

"I'm scared." Ginny finally said after a few minutes. She couldn't keep quiet with all of these questions raging inside. After Draco had given her the news he hadn't exactly divulged every detail of the decision right then and there. In fact he had dropped it entirely and left her in the garden alone. She knew he hadn't meant to walk away from her, that he needed time to think, but it still left her horribly ill to her stomach.

There was a silence from behind her, Draco breathing deeply into her hair. "Me too." He whispered, holding her so tight she thought she might not be able to breathe. She could feel his hands trying to stay gentle around her but tensing with his quiet thoughts. She knew he was thinking about what was to come because she was tortured by those very thoughts. She had no idea what Death Eater training meant and she didn't like the ideas her brain came up with for substitute.

Ginny, unable to handle not knowing what to expect, turned in Draco's arms. His eyes were so dark and distant from her that she wondered if this was even Draco. She had always known him to be calm, someone who always knew what was going on around him. But now, he finally looked like someone with something to lose.

She brought her thumb to his bottom lip and ran it across the rosy flesh. Smiling lightly, trying to lighten the mood, she began to play with his hair as she often did. She would let him be distracted even if it meant he wouldn't explain to her exactly what was going on. But they had a month and there was still time left for him to tell her. She wouldn't press it, she knew what it was like to feel hopeless and afraid.

She doubted though, that his time at Death Eater training would in any way compare to her arriving at the Manor.

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Ginny sat at the top of the staircase listening to the tempest roaring downstairs. She knew eavesdropping was unladylike but quite frankly it was the only way she was going to be able to get any information at all in this house.

It had been three weeks and Draco still hadn't muttered a word about what training would do to him or what he would have to do. Anytime they were alone he just held her in his arms and avoided talking altogether. It was as if he was trying to avoid admitting it to himself, but that wouldn't help either of them when the time finally came. She had to know what to expect when he got back. She had to know if she was still going to have Draco.

It didn't help that she had heard terrible things from Order members about what people had to do to become a Death Eater. Apparently they had to perform all the unforgivables, one each on Muggles. They couldn't be a virgin (which he had covered so it wasn't like he had to go throwing himself at anyone). They had to go on one of the Death Eater attacks and of course, had to accept the Dark Mark.

How much of this was true and how much was purely speculation, she didn't know. But she did know that anything similar to it was just as bad.

A crash resonated up the stairwell and she sighed, pushing her forehead into her knees. Narcissa and Lucius had forgotten to close their bedroom door and were having it out about Draco leaving.

"I will not have him go!"

"And exactly what say do you have in the matter?"

"I'm his mother!"

Another crash. "And I am his father and in charge of this family! You will not disagree with me and he will go. He must prove himself to the Dark Lord after his failure with Dumbledore. We were only so lucky that Severus was there to pick up the slack. Imagine my disgust when my own son couldn't even do something as simple as kill an old man."

"He was a boy! He's still a boy! Lucius don't do this! Give him more time to experience his childhood!"

"He's not a boy anymore Narcissa. After this he will officially be a man and there will be no question of his loyalty. Until he completes this training he will be questioned and suspected. I cannot have that of my own flesh and blood."

"And what if he doesn't want to follow the Dark Lord?"

Ginny knew immediately that Narcissa hadn't meant to say that at all. It was followed with a long silence and finally the door slammed. She knew Lucius would put a charm to silence any noise that could seep from beneath the door and quite frankly, Ginny didn't want to hear what she was sure would happen. Narcissa would pay dearly for her insinuation.

Fearful that Draco may befall the same fate if Lucius thought he had shown Narcissa his disloyalty to Voldemort, Ginny sprinted across the Manor to Draco's room. Beating furiously on the door she called out his name until he opened it. He had been dressing after a shower and still had a towel around his neck.

"What is it Ginny? Are you alright?" She couldn't waste time being smitten with how worried he was about her and launched herself into his arms.

"Oh, Draco! I overheard Lucius and Narcissa arguing about the whole training thing and Lucius said you had to prove you were loyal to the Dark Lord. Narcissa said what if he doesn't want to follow the Dark Lord and then I couldn't hear anything but what if Lucius thinks that you've said something to your mum? Draco, Lucius may come after you next!"

The news didn't seem to startle Draco but he knit his brows in confusion. "Overheard? Lucius can never be overheard, what were they arguing in the middle of the hallway?"

Ginny frowned. "Well, no, they were in their room but I-"

Draco frowned. "Were you eavesdropping on them?"

Ginny sighed with frustration. "Draco, you won't even talk about it and I've been worried sick over this. It was going to be the only way I could get any information at all, alright?" She begged him with her eyes to forgive her and after a moment's consideration he wrapped her in his arms to show he had.

"I just don't like thinking about it, much less having to explain it to you." He whispered against her hair. She caught herself reveling in the feel of his body against her, the smooth skin stretched across his muscled back and the way he shivered when she dragged her fingertips down his spine.

"I know you don't. But you can't leave without telling me what's going to happen. I can't just figure that out on my own and Draco… I care too much about you to just let it go. I need to know that you'll be okay or you won't… I need to know who's coming home to me after all of this."

Her words proved many points and he nodded. He exhaled through his nose and motioned for her to sit on the bed. He stood in front of her, hands on his sides as he stared at the floor.

"I will be taken to the Death Eater stronghold. I have no clue where it is but I hear it's an awful place. They have a lot of Muggles held up there and I have to perform the unforgivables on three of them to prove I won't hesitate to do it later." Ginny saw all of her worst fears coming true right before her. So everything the Order had heard was right.

"Then I've got to practice day in and day out on fighting skills, dueling, potions, things like that to make sure I'm up to par with aurors and whatnot." He cringed at the next thought.

"What is it?" Ginny leaned forward, wanting to know what was so painful to think about.

"I should be there for six months or so."

Ginny couldn't breathe. The tears quickly welled up in her eyes and she shook her head. "Six months!?" She cried out. Draco was next to her within a second, holding her to his chest.

"That's why I want to forget I'm going."

Ginny finally let herself drop the subject, understanding that this was something best left to the last moment. At least, that would be better for Draco. Ginny would have loved to talk about it, plan ways to make it not happen, but she also knew that the more it was in the forefront of their day-to-day activities the more it tortured Draco.

What Ginny needed to do was be a welcome distraction from the inevitable fate of her boyfriend.

Sighing, she wrapped her arms around his waist, feeling the rising and falling of his chest, the warmth of his body, and the muscles of his abs pressing against her diaphragm. He felt so good right here in her arms and for a moment she played with the idea of never letting him go. Of course she knew that was just a dream and the only thing she could do was wait until the time came for him to leave. Until then she would just have to make the best of this bad situation.

"I want to show you my garden." She said, taking his hand and leading him to the door.

They made their way to the plot she had next to the greenhouse. It was covered with a variety of different colored blossoms and grasses. She started explaining each of them, their necessary sun exposure, how big they got, what they could do in potions and things like that. Every once in a while she would look over at Draco to find him studying the plant she was talking about but somewhere else in his mind. It was as if he had turned off his thought process and put his body on autopilot.

She knew her mindless ramblings about which flower did what and what it was called in three different languages wasn't an actual conversation. It was like white noise that let Draco tune out of the world and just be comforted by the sound of her voice. She began talking about the medicinal purposes of helbit, a purple grass that laid flat in the sunlight but stood straight in the shade, when she stole a glance at Draco.

He was poking the ground with a stick, his eyes glazed over with nonexistent thought. He looked so beautiful like that, not trying to come up with things to say or arguing with her. It was odd that when he hid from the world around him in the solace of thoughtlessness he seemed the most serene. His jaw was slack and his lips almost parting. His eyelids hung heavy on his icy irises, covering them up halfway. He had stopped wearing gel per Ginny's request and the strands of shoulder length hair that were normally obediently brushing his neck were blowing about his face in the wind.

With a sigh Ginny continued on with her explanation. She had to for his sake.

------------------

They continued on spending hours in the garden at a time, Ginny repeating herself every day over the different uses and information on each plant. Draco was consoled in the fact that he was spending time with her and she was talking about something she was passionate about, Ginny was consoled in the fact that Draco was able to dismiss the moments in the future and disappear from the present all at the same time for a while.

It wasn't until four days before his scheduled departure from Malfoy Manor that Draco started to talk about his leaving again. He would gaze at Ginny for a few moments, causing her to blush under his eyes then ask her if she'd remember him when he was gone. She'd raise an eyebrow, mutter about how ridiculous the question was, then detail to him how little time she would have to think about anything other than him.

Smiling he would draw her into his arms and they would lie down on the bed, curled up next to each other. Draco would sometimes drift off to sleep but Ginny never could. She would always lie away thinking about what would happen to them when he left. She knew it was silly to think of the Death Eater training like going away to school, but part of her was scared he would meet another girl there or conform back to the ways of "Weasley's are evil and poor and should die".

The day before he was supposed to leave Draco and Ginny found themselves in each others arms again, lying on Draco's bed beneath his covers. Draco lay with his left arm behind his head, slightly on his side so he could see Ginny. His right wrist rested on his side as he let her gently caress him as she was prone to do.

Ginny was on her side, right arm beneath the pillow she was resting her head on and left hand operating gentle ministrations on Draco's bare chest. Ginny had begun a habit of changing into his silk pajama pants and a t-shirt before crawling into bed with him whereas Draco had routinely worn cloth drawstring pants and no shirt.

As Ginny's hands trailed across Draco's chest, his eyes traced her features to remember them. She had hazel eyes like chocolate with honey, dark red hair like rubies had been liquefied and molded into a wig. Her jaw was set in concentration as she tried not to go over the same place on his skin more than once in a three second period and her eyelashes fell across her cheeks in her intent gaze.

Her nose was straight, with a soft curve at the tip so she lacked the sharp jutting features Draco had himself. Everything about her was soft and rounded and organic. Her body curved at her shoulders, her breasts, inward at her waist and out again at her hips and thighs. He reached out and ran his free hand down her side, memorizing how long it took to come out of the groove of her thin waistline.

Smiling he pulled her close to his body and just as quickly as it had shown up, that smile was gone. Closing his eyes tightly, he moved his other arm and wrapped both around her body. "Ginny, you'll be the only thing keeping me going there."

Hot, wet tears dropped onto Draco's chest as Ginny started to convulse with quiet sobs. "I wish I could hide you from him. I wish I could save you from this."

His heart throbbed painfully. He knew what if felt like to have someone you loved be in pain and not be able to help. "Gin, it's not your responsibility to save me from this. This is something I've got to do."

With a sob which was meant as an inhale, Ginny pulled away to look into Draco's eyes. Where his were clear and dry, hers were already fogged over with tears and starting to get bloodshot. "How can you say that? You don't even want to go!" She sniffled, trying to stop crying but unable to. She hadn't cried in front of him to make sure she didn't remind him of his fate. She had instead waited until he was asleep and snuck back to her room to drench her pillowcase in a new batch of tears at night.

"I know." Draco frowned, the weight of the situation forcing its way into his stomach. He had run from reality for too long and it was starting to catch up to him. Maybe Ginny had been right, maybe they should have talked about this a long time ago. He ran his hands up and down her arms trying to soothe her. "It's just, if I say no then my life is more at risk than it would be if I went. If I go it's not like they'll kill me. At a time like this every man is valuable to him."

Ginny knew he wasn't talking about his father anymore but she had nearly beheaded Draco for mentioning _his_ name while they were in bed. It just wasn't appropriate pillow-talk.

"I'm not so worried about you losing your life anymore, I realize you're important." She paused, trying to figure out how to say what it was she felt and feared. For so long she hadn't been concerned with bringing these issues to light, but now that they had been forced onto the table she struggled with the words to say. "I'm worried about losing you."

Draco frowned further but this time in confusion. "What do you mean? You just said you knew I'd come back alive."

Ginny looked away, flushed from her bout of tears and struggling to explain things to him. "Like I said, I'm not worried about losing your life…" She sighed. Looking back, her eyes twinkling with the emotions bursting inside her, she forced a small smile. "I'm worried about when you come back. I don't want to lose you while you're away and when you come back you're not who you were when you left. Or, maybe you are and I'm just not… in the plan anymore." She finished almost at a whisper.

Draco watched her try to compose herself for a moment before grabbing her shoulders and pulling her into an intense kiss. His lips massaged hers as he let one hand play with her hair, twirling the curls around his fingers. His kiss read more than just passionate attraction; it was blind need and connection. Pulling back, Ginny's lips were plump and parted as she looked up into his eyes. "You can't lose me Ginny, because there's no way I could live without you."

Another round of entwined physicality passed and they both fell into light slumbers, dreams evading them with such a dark event almost at fruition.

-------------------

Ginny had awoken that morning to an empty bed and a room almost empty. Most of Draco's personals were packed up in trunks stacked in a corner of the room. She thought to herself how glad she was she had slept through the packing; she would have burst into tears and not been very helpful.

Draco was gone, probably finishing business with packing or talking with Narcissa, so Ginny went back to her room to shower and dress. She spent thirty minutes just letting the water fall on her back as she wandered alone in her thoughts. It felt like a dream, like she would wake up and it would be a month ago and none of this would have happened. But she knew better.

She got out of the shower and dried her hair, putting on just a bit of makeup for the day, not wanting to waste time making herself look good for the three hours Draco might still be at the Manor.

She walked into her cold room and dressed, the chill not affecting her numb senses. Her emerald green sweater dress seemed oddly cheery for the occasion but she knew Draco had loved it when she first wore it. The least she could do was show him off looking how he would want to remember her as. She wrapped her waist in a thick black belt and froze before fastening it. She reasoned that if she never got done getting dressed, then he would never leave. That in order for time to start up again she would have to complete her look. But if she stayed there, lost in the moment then he would stay in the Manor.

She bit her bottom lip to fight the tears already welling behind her lids. She knew better.

Belting up and pulling black leggings on underneath the mid-thigh length sweater, she pulled on black boots and grabbed up her wand before leaving her room.

In the hallway Draco was leaning against the wall across from her door waiting. He probably had come back to his room to find her gone and assumed correctly that she was changing. His eyes widened perceptibly at her and he trailed the lines of her figure with his eyes. Pulling her close, hands sliding around her waist and down to the small of her back he left a longing kiss on her lips.

Hands together, fingers entwined, they made their way down the hallway, Draco occasionally glancing over at Ginny, Ginny occasionally forcing her breathing to calm so she wouldn't cry.

They took a long walk around the garden, made small talk, avoiding the subject of his leaving. They stood in the ballroom and Draco asked Ginny to dance. They embraced long after the nonexistent song was through and finally when a house elf came to get them, they made their way to the foyer where Narcissa was barely holding it together and Lucius was smirking proudly. Ginny took her place by Narcissa and waited with a furiously beating heart.

Draco turned first to his father who patted him on the shoulders and dove into a speech about how honorable men went to training and came back as masters of their lives. Ginny's cheeks twitched with each sneer she had to hide. She stole a glance at Narcissa and seeing the woman on the verge of tears reached across the inches between them and behind the closure of their clothes, grasped Narcissa's hand in hers.

Narcissa kept her composure but Ginny didn't miss the sharp inhale and clenching of her jaw. Narcissa's hand gave a squeeze in return and possibly the two most important women in Draco's life stood beside each other providing the strength for one another they both direly needed.

After Lucius' rant, Draco went to Narcissa and hugged her, Narcissa barely able to put on the air of happiness in front of Lucius. She left a kiss to Draco's forehead and forced a smile onto her thin, pale lips.

Draco turned to Ginny and for once her heart sank with realization. They could not embrace in a like the lovers they were, they could not show any affection of the sort in front of Lucius. Lucius had remained blissfully unaware of their relationship and what proved to keep them safe inside the Manor was now the curse that kept them from running to each other, kissing, and whispering their goodbyes.

Instead Draco swallowed harshly, jaw clenched so tight Ginny wondered if his teeth would shatter. Ginny clenched and unclenched her fists as her sight went misty. Draco slowly approached her took her hand in his. At angle that Lucius couldn't see, Draco ran his fingers between hers, leaving quick kisses on each of her knuckles. She gasped lightly but not enough to draw notice to their secret moment.

Narcissa had moved to Lucius' side and was trying to distract him. Successful in doing so, she was able to keep him from seeing Ginny's lips form "I love you" or Draco return it.

Draco's hand fell away from Ginny's and they stood there for a split second, lost in the magnetism between them that threatened to throw the two together against their will. Draco stepped away, realizing that if he didn't leave soon he might never. Turning once more to his parents he nodded and with an almost unnoticeable sweep to gaze at Ginny once more, he was gone through the doors of Malfoy Manor.

Ginny waited in the foyer while Lucius escorted Narcissa upstairs and stayed there as she watched Draco be taken by carriage off the property. With the location of his destination so secret he had to apparate off Malfoy property. Ginny watched the black dot that was the carriage until she wasn't sure if she could still see it or not. Then, with control she didn't know she had, she made it her room and closed the door before crashing to her knees and crying for the rest of the night.


	16. Ch15: In the Meantime

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** To carry things along but not cram six months into one chapter, this chapter does jump around but it will not cover all six months.

**Author's Note: **Someone please go find JulieMalfoyZabini and make sure she hasn't drowned in her eggnog, I would hate for one of my most loyal reviewers to suffer such fate at the hands of a seasonal beverage. Yuki Asao, you flatter me. I have many grammatical errors, I just hide them well. To the rest of you: I love you all, for your dedication to this story I give you another chapter and a promise that should I abandon this one like I did to some of my others (which I find highly unlikely) I will pass out my home address so you can all come enslave me and beat out the unwritten chapters to complete the story. With that said…:

_Chapter Fifteen: In the Meantime_

Things at the Manor had passed like the shifting of tectonic plates. Ginny wondered if Draco's absence had also caused time to nearly halt so her torture would be drawn out. Every night she found herself wandering up and down the halls of the Manor, picking out places she and Draco had kissed, where he had nearly dropped her during a game of piggy-back, where she had nearly caused his socks to shoot off when she pushed him against the wall and snogged him senseless.

She would always lose herself in thought and wake up standing in front of his bedroom door. She'd walk in, crawl beneath his sheets and smell the cologne he wore on the pillow cases. She once ventured how cologne got on pillow cases, usually it would have worn off by the time sleep set in, but those thoughts were far overwhelmed when the memories of Draco forced her from the room so she wouldn't cry all over those silk sheets.

It shocked and scared her how deeply distraught she was with his absence. It wasn't like they had been dating for a particularly long time, but something with Draco had been different than with any other boy. She had often wondered what it was about Draco that had driven her so crazy. She knew he was gorgeous, and that was the first thought to come to mind, but appearances alone could not sway a Weasley.

She had wondered whether it had been because he was relatively different from her and balanced her out, but in truth it was quite the opposite. It was the things they had in common, how they could tell each other things and never say a word, how when they lay down together and he wrapped his arm around her she truly felt safe. It was his essence of always knowing what to do and what to say that made her believe him, that no matter what he would always know what to do and what to say to keep them safe.

She felt silly, she had pushed them together practically until the end of time with the way she was thinking. She wondered if that was a thought she should entertain but would quickly wipe it from her mind. She wouldn't subject herself to thinking those things if she wasn't even going to see Draco for six months. Once that thought occurred to her she would cry again.

So when the Christmas ball caught up to her and all of a sudden she was going to a social event alone, she felt like the rug had been pulled out from underneath her. Narcissa had almost insisted she invite a friend, but Ginny had politely said that none of her friends would have fit in. Truly, any of her friends would have loved to go but she didn't want to see what would happen when Lucius Malfoy and Hermione Granger were thrown in a room and social scene together.

Instead, Ginny truthfully said she'd rather just go alone and enjoy the company that would be there. Narcissa smiled when Ginny told her this, and Ginny knew it was because it was in memory of Draco.

When the night of the ball finally arrived and Ginny found herself in her bathroom wondering if she looked pretty, she all of a sudden felt guilty for caring. She reasoned that although the only person that mattered was gone, those that could think low of her were still here and she needed to do what she could to ease her life as much as possible.

And she secretly wished Draco would come in and surprise her that night. She didn't think they'd actually have Draco gone the entire Christmas break. She left her bathroom and walked downstairs to the ballroom where she and Narcissa immediately began their routine of mingling. She found herself engaging in conversations she normally wouldn't have for the pure reason of having nothing better to do and was even asked to dance a few times. She pondered turning them down but Narcissa had given her a look that warned otherwise.

That's right, Ginny thought, she was a girl of society and although it felt wrong she had to keep up appearances. The boys that asked her dance were sweet and generally very charming. She almost thought one was a bit eager to keep her in conversation but she was just too engrossed in missing Draco to pay attention to any unwanted advances. The evening had ended long after she'd felt it should and she'd went to her room almost immediately after, changed, and fallen asleep.

She woke up the next morning and wrapped her fingers in her comforter as she had become prone to do, pretending that it was in fact Draco's fingers between hers and not cloth. With a sigh, she got up and started her day.

-----------------

_-G-_

_Everything's fine so far. All it's been is physical combat training and potions. It seems I'm the only one my age here. They've got some blokes older than me but I seem to be better at everything anyways. That's good, by the way, the ones who don't catch on get crucio'd and so far I've been spared. Tell me, is father still at the house? I haven't seen him around here. Don't tell him I sent you any letters, he'll take it as a sign of weakness._

_-Sorry, I had to go to dinner, we all have to eat together in this room that looks like a stone prison. I still have no clue where we are but I suppose it's better than being around you-know-who. Anyways, how have you been? How was the Christmas ball? I wish I could've gone. I miss you terribly. You better have missed me. I won't forgive you if you didn't. _

_Write me back, the thoughts of you make this dank hole bearable. Don't send a picture or anything though, I don't want anyone snooping in my stuff and finding out directly who you are. Not that anything would happen but caution is a man's best friend. _

_All of my love-_

_-D-_

--------------

_-D-_

_I'm sorry it took me so long to write back, we had to prepare for the New Years ball and Narcissa insisted I continue my dance lessons. She brought in some boy that I was apparently supposed to know but I think I knew more about dancing than he did so she sent him away. _

_Lucius left the day after you did on business and hasn't been home since, thank the gods. The Christmas ball was menial, everyone kept asking to dance with me but the one person I wanted to dance with wasn't there. You've lost your mind if you think I don't miss you terribly. I go into your room sometimes… well it's foolish anyways; just know that I miss you. I think Narcissa may let me go home soon. I'd love to see my family again; it'll be a welcome distraction from not having you here. When I do I'll be sure to tell you so you can owl your letters to the right place._

_Do you think you'll be able to be home before the six months are up? I don't know how I'd be able to bear not seeing you the whole time, even these past five weeks or so has me going crazy. _

_Love you dearly-_

_-G-_

-----------

_-G-_

_How many boys asked you to dance and who were they? Tell them your boyfriends becoming a death eater and when he gets back he's killing all of them. Joking, of course, but really… If anyone so much as looks at you the wrong way I'll have their head._

_How was the New Year's ball? I'm sorry I wasn't there to kiss you, no one else tried did they? Please don't take so long to write back this time, you had me worried half to death waiting for that last letter. Punctuality, my dear, is a Malfoy's best friend. So you go into my room and rifle through my things to remind you of me? How adorable. I always knew you were strange though. _

_I'm afraid I don't think they give us a spring break, I'd love one though. I'm exhausted every night when we get done. The only thing I bother doing when I get back to my room is read that last letter you sent me and write this one. But this'll only take me one night so I'll just have to read your letter over and over again. _

_I'm lost without you, G. I do hope you can visit your family though. Watch out for scarhead. Make sure he knows your mine._

_If I could attach my heart to the end of this note I would, alas-_

_-D-_

_-----------_

_-D-_

_Don't worry about any other boys. I'm pretty sure my complete lack of interest in them taught them well enough to leave me alone. No one even attempted to ask me to dance at the New Year's ball except some of your father's business associates. Remind me that polite social behavior is also a good way to ogled by old men. Gross! _

_Don't tease me about going into your room; if I were gone I'm sure you'd do the same thing. _

_Don't worry about my bespectacled friend, I highly doubt he's got any interest in me anymore and if he did I'll drawn the lines very thick over which he should not cross. _

_Please keep your heart in your chest my morbid lover, I want you alive when you return to me-_

_-G-_

_p.s. _

_Am I Malfoy now?_

_-----------_

_-G-_

Draco froze. He hadn't really noticed that he'd grouped her in the family already. And it wasn't as if she was his sister or cousin. No, she was most definitely his girlfriend and for posterity's sake he'd already gone back through their family tree to make sure they weren't related. He frowned as his back spasmed between his shoulder blades. That days training had been a bit more harsh than the previous weeks.

He was coming to a close with physical combat training and would soon start purely academic training. He had in the beginning wondered how they could possibly stretch everything out over the whole six months, but apparently they really did need all that time. Not only was he going to learn all of the DADA they didn't teach in Hogwarts, he was going to learn the dark arts spells to get around it.

He stared back down at the letter Ginny had sent him. He ran his eyes over the way she curled her letters and scratched her t's and the way everything slanted downward to the right. He smiled. He loved her imperfections.

He loved her.

Draco dropped his face into his hands. When did he become so entwined with this girl when he had no clue? He knew for a fact that he loved her as in, he liked her a lot. That was never a secret from him. But now, with the question of his actual meaning so blatantly thrown in his face his first reaction had been to write down "only if you want to". If that didn't sound like a marriage proposal than he didn't know what did.

Did he really mean to propose to her? Was that a step he wanted to take? Was that a life he wanted to lead with her?

He had to think of what this all meant. He had to first admit to himself that he might actually enjoy the mental exploration of life after the war with her. Yes, that was true. But what happened next depended entirely on what course the war took.

If Potter won (which sadly, Draco hoped for both so Voldemort would finally stop being another pressure in his life and so he could have Ginny in his life without any deadly risk attached to it), than Draco could be with Ginny no strings attached. But if Voldemort won than Draco couldn't be invested in a Weasley. He smiled. He hadn't thought of her as a Weasley in quite some time. She had really become a Malfoy in his eyes. She acted like a Malfoy would, except nicer. She lived like a Malfoy did, except she was nice to the house elves (ugly things). And more importantly she had some distinctly Malfoy qualities about her.

She was quick and witty and enjoyed the playful banter between them. She could copy his most intimidating stares if she really wanted to and she was nearly the epitome of what a girl should be in the social scene. She was smart, controlled her temper much better than she used to, and didn't mind when Draco make jokes at the expense of Harry Potter.

In fact, the only thing that truly kept her from being a Malfoy was her last name.

Draco sighed. Putting quill to paper, he scribbled out his response.

_You've been officially adopted as a Malfoy whether you want to be one or not. Take it as a compliment; this is the highest honor anyone could ever wish to receive. And don't worry, you're not a Malfoy as in you and I are related. No incest here. _

_Yes, I would've gone into your room, too. _

_I have a question for you, what are you going to do about the Valentine's Day ball, hmm?_

_I won't condone you inviting another boy. In fact, I think I want you positively miserable for the occasion._

_I love it when you call me lover-_

_-D-_

He tied the letter around the ankle of his owl and the bird was off into the night sky through the only window in Draco's room. Turning around, he surveyed it.

It was a concrete room with four walls, three doors to the hall, bathroom, and closet. There was a small window barely big enough for his owl and a bed and desk. He felt like he was in some sort of subsection of Azkaban. With a sigh he lifted himself from his chair and went to his bed. He'd try to get some sleep to night but the screams coming from the dungeons during training haunted him every night.

Laying down and putting out the light he prayed for a night of dreamless sleep of which he wouldn't wake up in a pool of his own sweat.

He wished he was with Ginny, but he would never wish for her to there.

----------

Ginny put Draco's letter down and smiled. Sometimes she wondered if there was anyone else in the world who would understand his humor. Sometimes she hoped not, she hoped she was the only one who could completely understand him. It was selfish of her, but it was also a way in which she could secure her place in his life.

She ran her fingers through her hair. She wondered if she should be as forward with her emotions as she wanted to be. She'd done a good job of hiding them since he'd left, ignoring the pain she felt knowing that he was somewhere else and she was there in the Manor. It wasn't that she missed him; she missed her brother. It was that someone might as well have ripped her soul out of her chest and mailed it cross country. She literally felt as if part of herself had been taken away and was being tortured but she could still feel all the pain.

With an inward sigh she stood from her chair and walked to one of the large windows. Outside, the courtyard was being set up for the Valentine's ball that was coming up. She had talked to Narcissa and they had both agreed that it would be poor manners on her part not to show up at all, but she could go without an escort. Ginny hated doing things like this without Draco. At the New Year's ball she had wondered what things would have been like had he been there with her.

All this time they could have been getting closer but instead Lucius had turned them into pen-pals. Grunting in frustration she threw herself onto her bed and stared up at the ceiling. She didn't know what to do about Draco. She knew she loved him as in she liked him and liked when they were physical, but also when they weren't. But she also knew that she liked other boys that way before and Draco was entirely different.

She wished she had someone to talk to about it but the only person who knew so far was Narcissa. Ginny didn't think Narcissa was the appropriate person to consult on the intimacies of her and Draco's relationship. And she couldn't very well tell her family.

She had become accustomed to the fact that although she and Draco had been very public of their relationship in America and around the Manor when Lucius wasn't around, it was a secret that needed to be kept under wraps for the time being.

This would make going home very hard for her. She felt bad about it, but she had lied to Draco in her note. She knew Harry still had feelings for her but she hated it. She wanted him to just go ahead and get over her and move on. She was tired of having to step on egg shells with him all the time. It wasn't like what had happened with her in her first years at Hogwarts either. He'd sort of lead her on then.

When it came to how she felt about him now though, that was quite clear. She had told him before all of this had happened that she wasn't interested in pursuing a relationship with him and that he needed to deal with it. Well, he hadn't taken that well. She smiled at the thought of going home, though. She missed everyone and wanted to see them badly. Narcissa had promised she could go after the Spring ball.

She'd be going home in a month. She couldn't help but see it was a milestone for Draco coming home. She closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

-------------

Ginny watched herself move across the mirror in the bathroom. She almost didn't recognize herself. Her long red hair had been pulled up into a fashionable bun with a few stray strands hanging around her cheeks. Her dress was a regal shade of dark purple that illuminated her slightly pale slightly tan skin. Her lips, a pink, made her look younger than she felt. She watched the way her dress twirled around her. She wished Draco could be there to see it.

It was a halter dress with weaving down the bust. From the princess waist down it was a full skirt that brushed the floor with a quiet whisper as she moved. Down her back was a basket weave pattern that ended at the small of her back and fell into ribbons down her skirt. She sighed. This night would have been perfect had Draco been there.

With a sigh she moved out of her room and down the hall. The foyer was empty for the time being, the ball not starting for another hour, but she and Narcissa were to greet the guests as they came in.

She found Narcissa in the drawing room to the left of the foyer and stood against the doorframe with her arms crossed in front of her chest. She sunk deep in thought about how their lessons had been going lately. Ginny really was learning quite a bit, much more than she ever imagined she'd be able to. But ever since Draco left, she and Narcissa often found themselves in a silence that both knew was filled with thoughts of the pale haired boy.

Narcissa looked up from her desk where she was writing a letter to someone and smiled at Ginny, her eyes glinting from behind her half-moon glasses. "If I didn't know what you were thinking about I'd tell you to right your posture."

Ginny snapped awake and stood straight in the presence of her mentor. Giving Narcissa a sheepish grin, her cheeks tinting with pink fluster, she straightened her dress skirt. Narcissa turned around and tied the note onto the leg of the owl Ginny hadn't seen and they watched as it flew out the nearby window behind Narcissa.

There was a moment's pause before the woman stood and shut the window. "It seems our guests have started arriving." Narcissa said half to herself as she watched the carriages pull up to the house. Everyone always arrived early to mingle at functions such as these. Ginny watched Narcissa with a sad sort of admiration and sympathy.

The tall woman was dressed in a light periwinkle dress the fit her form like a glove. Her arms were covered with sleeves that seemed to wrap around her arms then cut off at an angle over the top of her hand. Her neck was displayed beautifully with a square neck and decorated with an elaborate dangling necklace of diamonds. Ginny remember Draco telling her about how Lucius loved to put expensive jewelry on Narcissa. For some reason her beauty was just not enough.

Ginny begged to differ; she knew why he put those things on her. It was ownership.

Ginny's thoughts came back to the present as Narcissa looked down at her hands and her long pale hair shimmered under the moonlight. She was a gorgous woman, but her sadness was so visible, Ginny wondered how no one could notice it. The lines in Narcissa's face told stories of all she'd been through since eloping with Lucius and the gray vacancy behind her irises gave away her secret desire to be back in America.

Ginny knew that if she were ever in a position like Narcissa's she'd do the same thing.

Narcissa turned from the window in a flourish of elegant choreography and made her way to the foyer where she and Ginny stood for their guests. Lucius always stayed in the living room where the men went first, as if his not greeting guests somehow showed his importance over Narcissa and Ginny.

The first guests arrived and it was the Zabinis. Ginny had to fight the sneer rising on her features as Blaise took her hand and shot her a smug grin. Blaise's father on the other hand, took Ginny's hand and immediately requested that she reserve a dance for him. Nodding with the civility Narcissa had taught her, she looked to that woman she had seen at the first ball. If looks could kill Ginny wouldn't have had a prayer.

Other filed in behind them like the Crabbes, the Carrows, McNair, and other assorted people whom Ginny had no desire to be around. Once Lucius' crowd had all been sort out and some of Narcissa's had come through, Ginny was feeling more comfortable about the evening than she had at the beginning.

She and Narcissa made their way back to the ballroom where everyone was speaking in hushed tones about this or that, sipping on a variety of colored beverages, and much to Ginny's chagrin, eyeing her and stepping closer to the person whom they were talking to.

Ginny, a shiver shooting down her spine, instinctively stepped closer to Narcissa as they made their rounds speaking with those who were deemed more important to the Malfoys. It wasn't until they were almost done that Mr. Zabini found her in the crowd.

"Narcissa!" He exclaimed, hand lightly on her elbow. He flashed a smile to Lucius who had at some point obviously joined Ginny and Narcissa. Ginny was surprised that she hadn't noticed this, she usually felt the distinctive fingers of death gripping the back of her neck anytime Lucius was around. All Lucius did was grin slightly and Mr. Zabini turned to Narcissa once more. "I demand I have a dance with your young socialite here."

Ginny was probably the only one in the whole group that could see the slight pursing of the blonde woman's lips, the way she hesitated for a slight moment as she flicked her eyes to Ginny. Ginny must not have looked like it would have killed her (although in her mind she disagreed…) because Narcissa promptly smiled as if nothing had been wrong. "Of course! Of course! Poor dear doesn't have a dancing partner this evening so I'm sure she wouldn't mind a twirl."

The tone in Narcissa's voice was clearly that of unease but she had been so clever in disguising it that it was only Ginny, be steered away by Mr. Zabini's robust muscles that could detect it. As they reached the dance floor the current song ended.

She waited for him to make the first move, and make it he did. Slipping one hand comfortably on her waist which now tingled with the desire to pull away, the other took her hand up in it and they posed waiting for the next song to begin. Before the orchestra could strike up though, he leaned in and in a voice only Ginny could hear he spoke to her. "I assume you are unaware how my Blaise got all of those terrible bruises on him the last time he was around here."

Ginny blanched and was nearly tripped over in her hesitation to move but she recovered easily and avoided his searching eyes. "I'm afraid I'm unable to give you any information on that. He didn't go into the garden unattended did he? Some of those bushes…" She was mid-lie when Mr. Zabini's hand on her waist gripped her so tightly that she winced in pain.

"I don't appreciate fables, Miss Weasley. And that's what you are, remember? A Weasley. So show me some respect and tell me now why my son returned to our home looking as if he'd been attacked."

Ginny couldn't think of what to do as she was twisted and turned by her interrogator. She had both been found out for lying and insulted for her surname.

She reasoned, she could easily tell the truth since Blaise was probably the kind of coward that wouldn't go bragging to his father about it. And she had heard before from Order members that the Zabinis were a neutral family in the war. This meant that in some aspect Mr. Zabini didn't agree with what Voldemort was doing. She hoped that would include rape.

Or she could lie again, which seemed more appropriate since divesting in how Draco had come to save her could ultimately play into giving away their relationship. And at a time when he was so far away from her, too far away to be saved, she wouldn't put him at risk like that. But she did want to tell the truth.

"He-" She started, but the music quickly ended and Mr. Zabini was gone through the crowd with a satisfied smirk on his face.

Frowning, clenching her jaw to keep what semblance of strength she might have had left, she made her way back to Narcissa's side.

Narcissa, who had been watching them the whole time, asked her what he'd said and once Ginny was done, had hissed through her teeth like a mother cat protecting her kittens. But more elegant.

Throughout the night she was asked to dance by probably the oldest perverted men she could pick out of the crowd. Even Crabbe's father asked her dance and with his place as a Death Eater rather public, Narcissa couldn't turn him down without both she and Ginny suffering by Lucius' hand for it.

Finally when that dance was over Ginny curtseyed like she had been taught and excused herself to get a drink, rather, the escape this ballroom where she felt like she was being passed around for auction.

She stepped over to the beverage table, keeping up her rouse, she gathered up some sort of strawberry drink and went into the hall where she found a nice dark corner and nearly cried.

If this night could go any worse she would receive news of Draco finding another girlfriend or something. Sipping at her drink she felt the pit of her stomach draw her upwards in wanting to go write him about the evening. They had gotten into a comfortable routine of writing about every three or four days to each other. She liked it, it was the closest she could get to him being home and she would take it.

Sipping her drink again, the back of Ginny's neck began to tingle. Frowning, she didn't have two seconds to think on it when her drink was smacked out of her hand and her back was thrust against the wall. Her shoulders were pinned by the familiar strength of Blaise as he visibly seethed in the shadows.

"Well, well, Ginevra. Looking rather gorgeous this evening. Almost good enough to taste." The last word sounded more like a threat as his tongue flicked across her jaw.

Sneering, Ginny struggled as much as she could against his vice grip. "Blaise let me go!" She hissed in return, trying to aim her heel for his foot. She had no luck and was instead rammed against the wall by Blaise's body which now pinned her entirely still.

"Tsk, Gin. I would've figured you'd be smart enough to know it's futile to struggle without your keeper here to save you."

Ginny opened her mouth to speak but was stopped when Blaise was wrenched off of her and thrown against the opposite wall. Ginny paled and shrunk against the wall. She didn't know whether it would have been the lesser of two evils to cower with Blaise against the wall in front of Lucius, or to scoot closer to her attempted savior.

Lucius, for his part, was grinning as he always did but something flashed in his eyes that made Ginny nervous. He was obviously genuinely irritated at Blaise's behavior and although she was thankful for the reprieve of her torture, she didn't want to know what motivation Lucius had for saving her. Her past had taught her that whatever they were, they usually weren't good.

Lucius cast his glances to Ginny for a moment as if to make sure she was okay. She was, her hair was a bit out of place and her arms were beginning to bruise but she'd come out much better than she had the last time.

Lucius' cold gaze fell on Blaise and Ginny saw Blaise's shoulders drop as if an invisible weight had been dropped on them. "I assume you enjoy yourself at these parties we throw here at Malfoy Manor?" Lucius asked.

Ginny found this an odd question, but also found her feet stuck to the floor in fear and her hands unable to move from flat against the wall.

Blaise nodded. "Y-Yes, Mr. Malfoy." Blaise was clearly trying to keep a steady face, trying not to dishonor his family or whatnot. Too late, Ginny thought.

"And I assume your father appreciates the invitations? The display of social importance in times like these?" Lucius asked again. She was almost daring enough to think she knew where his line of questions was going.

"Yes." Blaise clenched his fists.

"Then it will do you well to remember the customs of this house. Although Miss Weasley here has found herself a Malfoy of only recent months, she is a Malfoy in this house all the same. Should she report to me that anything of the like has occurred again, I assure you your father will be quite unhappy with the repercussions."

Blaise nodded. Lucius dismissed him and Blaise nearly darted for the nearest entrance into the ballroom. Ginny just stood against the wall as if she stood there long enough she'd be absorbed and could hide from it all. Her mouth was dry and she wanted to thank him, but something told her very loud and clear that he had not done that out of civic duty. If anything, it was to make sure that his name was protected.

She felt a cold hand on her shoulder and looked up to find Lucius' smile gone. "Come along, Ginevra." He stated simply, and with that her fear of moving was gone and replaced with her fear of staying put. She followed him, all the while tucking strands of her hair back into their place.

"Thank-" She started but the grip on her shoulder tightened almost painfully as they re-entered the ballroom. Not a word of it was spoken to Narcissa. Ginny inhaled deeply with relief as she found the time wearing on the crowd thinning out. She was dismissed to her room sometime around midnight and quickly penned her description of the night to Draco. As she tied the final knot around the owls leg and let it fly through her window, her thoughts drifted back to the odd behavior of Mr. Zabini and Lucius Malfoy that night. Was there something going on that Ginny hadn't been aware of? Would it even matter if she was?

Head in her hands she shook as she sighed, her nerves besting her, and she readied herself for the sleep that night that wouldn't come.


	17. Ch16: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** This chapter is extremely important to the story. There is quite a bit of this chapter that is NOT dialogue but trust me, there is more meat in those parts than the speaking ones. Please take your time to read what I have written and don't just skim (like I know I'm guilty of).

**Author's Note: **This chapter was a bit late getting up because of a lot of things, I got sick and am actually STILL sick. I had to deal with the Xmas holidays during which I spend time at my moms no internet. There were a lot of things I wanted to throw in this chapter and I wouldn't let it be posted until I was sure this chapter was the way I wanted it to be. With that said…:

_Chapter Sixteen: Call Me Ginevra_

_-D-_

_Valentine's Ball was eventful in the most terrible way. First Mr. Zabini got me in a dance with him and started asking me about Blaise from my coronation ball. Then I had to dance with a bunch of your father's friends. I was getting something to drink when Blaise cornered me but your father actually pulled him off. Don't worry, I wasn't hurt or anything. He grabbed my arms harshly and I've got some bruising but nothing terrible._

_Draco it was the strangest thing having your father of all people rescue me. I was at a loss of whether to thank him or run from him. He even said I was a Malfoy while in the Manor! _

_That was the worst of the night though. I missed you terribly, you would've loved my dress. I think of you everyday. I hope time flies between now and when you can leave so I can see you very soon._

_Stay safe for me. _

Ginny paused. She didn't know if she had the heart to write what was next. She wanted to confess her undying love for him but she wasn't sure if she really could without feeling like a fool. Even though Draco seemed to feel the same way, she wouldn't bet on it. He had been known to wear masks to achieve what he wanted.

She shook her head. She had tried her best to distill all previous memories of Draco from school but she only been mildly successful. The reminder that Draco had once so vigorously put worlds between them was just too strong. There were times now that he was gone that she wondered whether he was using her in America, if she really had been a fool.

Of course, like this time, she had to push those thoughts out of her mind as best she could. Nothing could tear them apart besides each other.

With one last groping for courage, she pressed her quill to her letter.

_Stay safe for me. I love you._

_Yours always,_

_-G-_

------------------

Sighing, Ginny turned the page in the book she was reading and finished up the sentence she was on before closing it. Rubbing her eye she looked over at Narcissa who was penning something at her desk. Things had started to go minute by minute after the Valentine's Day ball. First, after hearing about what had happened between Ginny and the Zabini's, Narcissa apologized profusely for letting Mr. Zabini dance with Ginny. Narcissa did explain, however, that because Ginny was a socialite now that she was responsible for keeping up appearances for the Malfoys just like Narcissa was.

Ginny insisted she understood this. It was still creepy though, to dance with Crabbe's father.

She wondered sometimes, whether it was worth it to be this socialite, to have come to live in Malfoy manor all for her own security. Had she really been that much more secure? She had almost been raped, she had been attacked again, and she was living in the same house as Lucius Malfoy. How much safer was she than if she had lived with her parents?

Then again, had she stayed with her parents she would've had to stay inside the house at all times. Being with the Malfoys was entirely different. Narcissa had told her that everyone assumed that her parents were dead and that she had realized the reach and power of the Dark Lord and succumbed to his inevitable rule. This was the farce she had to maintain while living under the house. If anyone at the balls asked her about her opinions she had been previously instructed to say that she had neither received the honor or the privilege of any information to talk about and leave it at that.

She hated knowing that every time she saw someone she would be introduced as a Malfoy and as a Dark Lord supporter when she wasn't, but now wasn't the time to pick and choose how her life would be. Now was the time to preserve what life she had anyway she could.

She set the book she had been reading down on the table and Narcissa looked up above her glasses from what she was doing. She had been well informed on Ginny's disgruntlement about Draco being sent off. They shared the utter loathing of their similar situations and because Narcissa loved Ginny as her own daughter, she had no problems at all with Ginny and Draco being in a relationship. Lucius, however, was a different story entirely.

Narcissa and Draco had both mentioned before how unruly he became when things didn't go as he had planned. And Draco was supposed to marry Pansy in his eyes. Ginny was not part of the plan. Now that she had been thrust into the world of the Malfoys, Lucius had yet to shape her future for her. She was grateful, since her time at the Manor would hopefully prove short but not having a plan in Lucius' mind was far worse.

Setting down her quill, Narcissa took of her half-moon glasses. "Let's go for a walk." She stated, and stood from her chair gracefully.

Ginny looked up from where she was staring at her book and both of her eyebrows rose. Nodding, she stood and followed Narcissa out of the room. They walked across the foyer into the living room where the furniture had been chosen in dark woods and uncomfortably overly-stuffed seats. Ginny ran her fingertip along the leather upholstery of a nearby chair. She was shaken from her thoughts when Narcissa cleared her throat.

"I know I've given you a rather informal tour of the Manor, but I think you'd be interested in our artifacts that I didn't point out the first time around." Ginny nodded and followed Narcissa through the room until they were in front of the fireplace. Above the fireplace were different vases or the like. Narcissa explained that they had been handed down by Lucius' mother at the wedding.

Ginny didn't know Lucius had a mother.

Really, she thought it was quite odd, how could she not have thought at least once in the past about Draco's grandparents? But the truth of it was she didn't really think of Lucius' side of the family much. In fact, if Narcissa would have told her that Lucius had just popped into existence one day Ginny wouldn't have thought twice about it.

Looking them over she could tell they had been made by a master of whatever material they were made out of. It couldn't be porcelain; there were small pores in the thick walls of the pottery. Earthenware? It didn't strike her as a very Malfoy staple in the home, but thought it best to ignore that.

Narcissa brought her around to the small table by the entrance to the formal dining room. On top were ancient volumes in different languages. Ginny guessed they were there to show off, although upon consideration she wasn't sure. There were photos of houses in some sort of hilly countryside. Ginny wouldn't put it past the Malfoys to brag about other homes. Well, she said the Malfoys, she meant Lucius.

-----------------

Narcissa had lead her around the manor and by the time they were done and back at the entryway Ginny had seen everything from family portraits to Goblin made weaponry. Ginny had welcomed this distraction from her thoughts with open arms and hadn't spent a second dwelling on her worries over Draco.

She Narcissa often took to reading or other busy work to keep her mind off things that would do her no good to think about. She had told Ginny once that worrying over things was for those with the power to do something about it. Sadly, Narcissa lacked the power and therefore the necessity to worry over such things. Ginny did too, and so when Narcissa brought her around floor by floor, room by room, to each and every artifact and explaining each and every detail, Ginny had been grateful.

Ginny sat down in her chair with sigh. "I had absolutely no idea there was so much history in this house." Her eyes were still wide with awe from being allowed into Narcissa's private office. There were French antiques and Asian tea sets, English wardrobes and fine works of craftsmanship with the grandfather clocks and so forth.

Taking her seat once more at her desk, Narcissa began to open up letters that owls had brought in while they were away. Ginny couldn't believe that Narcissa could possibly be so busy in the matter of a few hours but as sure as Ginny was sitting there in that seat, Narcissa had close to ten owls on her desk.

"My, my, can't leave my desk for moments of pleasure without being barraged by owls, I see." Narcissa muttered to herself as she sifted through the pile. "What's this?" She whispered with a sigh, holding an owl up with an interesting new wax seal.

Narcissa carefully opened it and Ginny watched as her face turned from slight disinterest to pleased. "Well!" She exclaimed and took her small half-moon glasses off to set them aside on her desk. "I have a dear friend in France, her name is Claire. She has a nephew named Laurent who's to be joining us for some time while he's doing business here in England." Narcissa explained. "Claire will be joining him. This will be a wonderful opportunity for you to expand your social circle to those of different cultures. You see, Claire is very prominent in French society."

Ginny nodded. Another ball, another event she would have to feign pleasure in being at. And now this Laurent? Would this be another suitor that she would have to brush off and keep from insulting? He was in fact the nephew of one of Narcissa's very close friends. Well, Narcissa knew about Draco at least. She would understand if Ginny couldn't exactly fall into the hands of some Frenchman.

Sighing she forced a smile. Narcissa seemed excited enough, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. Ginny's thoughts drifted, as they always did, to Draco…

--------------------

Ginny held out her hand and couldn't help but smile when two periwinkle blue eyes looked into Ginny's own. Claire was definitely beautiful. She had thick brown hair that curled and brushed against her back as she walked. She was shorter than Narcissa, in fact she was only barely taller than Ginny but when she walked into a room she took up all the space. She was fair-skinned and thin, her figure was that of a ballerina, very straight and lithe.

Her nephew on the other hand, was quite the opposite in build. He towered over Ginny by a good ten inches and was built like a beater. His arms were thick and muscular, his shoulders were broad, and Ginny could tell by the way he held himself that the rest of his body was probably in good shape. Had she not been with Draco, she would've found him quite attractive.

She sighed inwardly. Draco still hadn't written her back and she was sure she had doomed their relationship to failure. She had meant what she had written, but she now thought that she had written those words too early. What if he didn't feel the same? Would he break off their relationship? Would he see if he felt the same? The last time they had said those words to one another was post-coital and she wasn't prepared to hold that over his head.

Her thoughts were brought back to the foyer when Narcissa stepped beside her and extended her arm in the direction of Laurent. "Laurent," She said her voice steady and cool like Ginny knew. "This is Ginevra, she is staying with us. Ginevra, this is Laurent, Claire's nephew."

Laurent smiled and extended his hand to take Ginny's. Ginny's stomach sank. She hated this part. He would comment on how beautiful she was or how much of a pleasure it was to meet her. It made her want to vomit. Or, she considered, do something slightly more ladylike.

Ginny let him take her hand and he left a small kiss on her knuckle as they all had. "Nice to meet you." He said in his French accent. That was it.

Ginny was surprised at the feeling that burned through her stomach. That's it?

No proclamations of her goddess-like features? No declarations of her unparalleled beauty?

Ginny hated to admit it, but she was a little disappointed. _Now, now, Weasley,_ she thought to herself as she followed Narcissa and Claire into the drawing room. _Confidence and pride share a thin line, remember which side you belong on._

Sitting down on the couch beside Laurent across from Narcissa and Claire, Ginny watched with baited breath how Narcissa and Claire interacted. There was something about the way Narcissa moved and spoke around Claire, it was as if Ginny and Hermione were sitting there talking instead. Narcissa lit up, her cheeks dimpling slightly, something Ginny had never seen before. Her skin blushed slightly as she spoke of the updates in her life with Claire. Claire seemed to be reacting the same way.

Ginny wondered for a moment if there was something in the tea…

"Narcissa said you are staying here, do you go to school nearby?" Ginny was surprised to hear Laurent speak and nearly spilt the tea she had been inspecting for magical herbs moments before.

Ginny, thrown off guard, opened and closed her mouth a few times like a fish before she realized what she was doing and smiled, blushing slightly. "Uh, no. Actually, Narcissa is home-schooling me."

Laurent nodded, his lips stretching into a smile. "Aunt Claire home-schooled all of my cousins. She felt that not even Beauxbatons could rival the knowledge she could pass on to her own children."

Ginny laughed. That's exactly how Narcissa was. "Whenever Narcissa came for me, she told me what I was supposed to be learning and I sat there dumbly thinking to myself, 'well what am I supposed to do without DADA or Care of Magical Creatures'?"

Laurent chuckled and nodded in response. They continued on in superficial chatter before Ernest stepped up to the doorway and announced the dinner would be served. Ginny looked to the clock to see if it was really seven. They had been sitting in the drawing room for at least an hour talking. Laurent had kept her attention that long and they had been having a relatively good conversation.

Ginny immediately felt guilty for not thinking of Draco for so long while in the presence of another boy, but Laurent proved to be an active conversationalist. And it wasn't as if Ginny was thinking dirty thoughts about him or anything, in fact she hadn't really thought about him as a physical being since she'd first seen him.

She looked back to the group in the room and they all stood as if in chorus to leave. Narcissa lead the way followed by Claire and Laurent and Ginny at the back. They were the perfect portrait of high society.

Except they didn't have Draco.

------------------

Laughter flooded Malfoy Manor. Ginny was in wonder. Lucius had returned from his whatever it was he took two days to do, into Claire and Laurent's visit and to Ginny's surprise, he liked them both. Or rather, he tolerated them.

Narcissa and Claire were busy discussing plans for the Spring ball which had been taken hostage and turned into a celebration of Claire and Laurent's stay at the Manor. Lucius and Laurent were busy discussing things Ginny would rather not know about going on in society those days and Ginny… Well, she was thinking of Draco as usual. She drew her bottom lip between her teeth as she found herself doing when her thoughts drifted to Draco.

She stood and whispered to Narcissa that she needed to be excused. They were in the living room to the left of the foyer and it was still as stuffy as it had been during the tour Narcissa had given her. She crossed the entryway into the dining room and then took the corridor to the ballroom where she exited into the garden. She needed to be outside.

Sighing, she rubbed her arms as the cool wind brushed against her skin. Although it was spring, the air still bit and brought chills to her bones. Looking around the garden at the transformation that it had undergone to bring it from the wintry plants to the springtime floras, Ginny couldn't help the soft intake of air. Malfoy Manor, despite it being connected to Lucius Malfoy and all of the terrible things he associated himself with, was a very beautiful place.

The entire building was flooded with architectural grandeur and awe inspiring décor littered the inside. The grounds were landscaped so beautifully that Malfoy Manor could act as either a homestead or botanical garden. The inside could very well have been a museum with all the collectibles and family heirlooms. Ginny hated to admit it sometimes, though the idea was slowly growing on her, that Malfoy Manor was a place she had dreamed of coming to and being raised in.

This life, the person she was becoming, she had once feared that it would change her and morph her into another Pansy Parkinson… but she as mislead and quick to judge as she had felt those of society were doing with her. Pansy and her friends was only one small facet of this complex universe that she was now a part of.

She shivered in delight. She was now a member of this world and what was better was that thanks to Narcissa she was able to act on mostly her own terms. She didn't have to indulge the boys or girls of her age group in doing the ridiculous things she did. Of course, she found herself without any friends which made her days lonely… but with Draco there it wasn't as bad. Even when they disliked each other, their playful banter had provided some sort of escape from the monotony of the Manor. Narcissa had always tried to include Ginny in her meetings with fellow women of society.

Ginny recalled one afternoon when she and Narcissa met up with Mrs. Parkinson for tea. Mrs. Parkinson, who Ginny still didn't know the first name of, had gone on and on about Pansy being away in Beauxbatons to finish up her schooling. Narcissa had told her about home-schooling Ginny and Mrs. Parkinson had just smiled. "Well that's not way to socialize, is it?" She had asked.

Ginny had no idea what she meant outside of not having any friends; she was far from bothered with it. Narcissa on the other hand, seemed slightly perturbed by the comment. "Yes, well," She had begun. Ginny remembered the way she had slowly set down her teacup. "Sometimes it's best to filter with whom my charges socialize."

Needless to say the conversation and the entire outing ended shortly thereafter. Mrs. Parkinson found herself called away on important business and Narcissa the same.

Ginny smiled, Narcissa had always had a way with saying things so they could be interpreted either way. Narcissa had even said that Ginny, after learning which grammar to use in a sentence, could do the same just as well if not better because she was so young.

Ginny reached the fountain and sat on the edge, moving so her knee length skirt didn't skim the water and get wet. Her white skirt was quite possibly one of her favorite wardrobe pieces now. She didn't know how to explain it or what to call it, but the skirt was made up of so much fabric that if she wanted to curtsey she could hold her skirt as high as her head and it still wouldn't reveal anything above her knees.

Her legs were covered in goosebumps from the wind, her upper body shielded with a green scoop neck top. She was chilled but just couldn't bring herself to go back inside yet.

She looked down at her reflection in the water. She realized that she really had changed since being at Malfoy Manor. She hadn't noticed so much since she was around others like her… (that statement seemed odd in her mind)… but now that the time for her to visit home again was so close, she wondered how they would receive her.

Her speech was different, she didn't use slang near as much as she used to. She wasn't clumsy anymore and she had been told that she was actually very graceful. She could dance with the best of them. Most importantly, Narcissa had said, she had more self-confidence. Ginny was still stunned by her physical appearance. She was taller, slightly thinner, her hair was redder and her eyes looked more golden than hazel.

She doubted that Narcissa's teaching or any of the extravagances she had around the house could possibly change her hair color or eye color, but she wouldn't put it past the Malfoys to have found something that would.

All of a sudden she was sick to her stomach. What would her family think of her when they saw her? Would they still feel the same way about her? Would they still love her the same and treat her the same? No, they probably wouldn't treat her the same. Once Fred and George caught on to how she moved, they'd immediately start teasing her about being snooty. Ron would have a field day asking her a thousand questions about evil Draco Malfoy.

She smiled, she had better keep their relationship a secret from her family as well. It was definitely going to be a pill to swallow when they found out.

Her smile fell.

_If _they found out.

Draco still hadn't written her back and it had been nearly… She smiled. It had been a grand total of four days since she had written the letter and here she was expecting such a speedy reply. It usually took their letters a week at a time with travel time and the fact that Draco had to wait to write her sometimes. She shouldn't expect any different just because she had told him she loved him.

She blushed furiously. If her dire need to see him write it back wasn't enough, the physical ailments she suffered were certainly proof that from miles and miles away, her love for Draco was real and still had a strong hold on her.

Sighing she picked up a stone and dropped it into the water, watching they way the water shook and rippled. As the water settled she noticed two shadows in the reflection. It took her a split second before she realized Laurent was standing behind her. Jumping at his quiet arrival, she covered her beating heart with her hand and turned to smile apologetically up at him. "Bugger, you startled me."

Laurent chuckled and motioned to the fountain surround on which she was sitting. "May I?" He raised both eyebrows in question. Ginny nodded and settled so that she was facing away from the water behind her.

Laurent sat down beside her and leaned over, his elbows on his knees. "Sorry to have startled you." He said his French accent thick. "Narcissa asked me to find you. Said you had been gone a while." He explained.

Ginny nearly blanched. How long had she been away? "I stepped out to get some air; sometimes that living room can get a little stuffy…" She trailed off, wondering if her absence had been a big deal.

Laurent smiled and said "Narcissa said you'd probably be out here. That I should check on you to make sure you hadn't fallen into the fountain." He chuckled again.

Oh great, Ginny thought, they were making jokes at her expense while she was away. Smiling, fighting the blush that was burning beneath her skin, she turned to Laurent. "I'm a fan of the garden. It's just really peaceful out here so I come here a lot to just relax."

He smiled like he understood. "My mother loved gardens. She even dedicated an entire acre of land to a garden labyrinth."

Ginny's eyes widened like two saucers. "An entire acre? She sounds like me." She laughed.

Laurent's smile dropped. "She died two years ago."

Ginny felt entirely more awkward than she would have preferred. "I'm… I'm sorry to hear that Laurent." She patted his arm tenderly and was about to pull away when he covered her hand with his. A thousand alarms went off in her head but he merely smiled sadly.

"Please don't feel strange. I know a lot of people feel strange when I tell them. It wasn't a hard death. She died quickly and it was because of an illness. There are no open-ended questions about if she could have lived or anything. Please don't feel bad for anything." He removed his hand and his smile took a different, happier appearance. "My aunt and Narcissa are talking about this ball we have to go to."

Ginny nodded, grinning. Narcissa loved balls. Ginny figured it was some way for her to pretend that everything was all right in her world and that things truly were as magnificent as they seemed at first. "It'll be a great chance for you to meet all the women who will fawn over your good looks and all the men who will try to recruit you into their dirty companies." Ginny shrugged. "The dancing is nice, though I haven't enjoyed a ball in quite a while."

Laurent frowned. "Why is that?"

Ginny opened her mouth and shut it quickly. Laurent and Lucius had gotten fairly smug very quick and Ginny didn't know if she should trust that. After the entire fiasco with Blaise she had learned her lesson in trusting too easily the people in this new world. "There's this boy that I've been seeing recently. But he's been away on family business so he hasn't been at any of the balls." She explained delicately. Surely that wasn't a direct arrow to Draco? "And this other boy who I had tried to be with is… well…" She frowned. "Still pursuing me but in a very rough manner." She finished a little tongue-tied.

Laurent raised his eyebrows. "Do Narcissa and Lucius know about this?"

Ginny nodded. "In fact at our last ball, Valentine's Ball, he cornered me and Lucius nearly ripped his head off. I've never been so grateful for Lucius than at that moment…"

"This other boy," Laurent continued. "Will he be back for this ball coming up? Or no?"

Ginny shook her head. "No, he's not due back for a while. This business trip is overseas and he has a lot of new people to meet."

Laurent nodded. "Well, I believe you and I in a way will be in the same boat." He began tapping his foot. "You see I was once with this girl but she broke my heart. Do not tell, but that is one of the reasons I am here. She ended our relationship very quickly, without a goodbye, and ran off to some place in South America with her lover."

Ginny's eyebrows nearly disappeared in her hairline. "No! How terrible, I'm so sorry Laurent."

He shook his head. "Please call me Ren, everyone who is a friend does." He smiled. "What name do you prefer?"

Ginny was about to tell him to call her by Ginny but she stopped. Was she really Ginny anymore? Ginny was the girl who followed Harry Potter around and played pranks with Fred and George. Ginny was the girl who hated Draco Malfoy and everything he stood for, was the girl who tripped over her own feet and didn't know anything but good and evil. No, no she wasn't Ginny anymore.

She smiled. "Call me Ginevra."

------------------

Ginny chewed on the skin beside her thumbnail. It had been nearly two weeks since she had sent her last letter to Draco and she was still waiting for his reply. This was most unlike him. As he had said, punctuality was a Malfoy's best friend. But this Malfoy, it seemed, was finding it hard to reply to her. She groaned into her hands as she collapsed on her desk littered with papers for the Spring ball that was to commence the following evening. She had made a huge mistake.

She shouldn't have opened her mouth. Or her hand. Or, however she could possibly ration sensibly that writing to him that she loved him was quite assuredly the worst idea she ever had.

Finding it harder to sit still and wait for her world to come crashing down around her, Ginny gathered up her resolve and darted from her bedroom to see Narcissa. If there was anyone who could tell her how to right the whirling winds of chaos around her it would be Narcissa. She was halfway down the stairs to ask the woman about what would be the best course of action when a piece of paper fell on the step in front of her.

Looking up, Ginny saw the familiar owl that belonged to Draco soaring through the vaults of the ceiling and disappear down a hallway. Grabbing up the letter, she made a turn and headed back for her room. All the while she was ripping at the cord tied around the note so that when in the haven of her room she would be able to read the note as soon as possible.

She turned into her room and slammed the door shut behind her. Tossing the tie aside she skidded to a halt in front of her bed and unraveled the paper so she could read the words on it.

_-G-_

_I can't do this anymore. I just can't. I'm sorry but I can't let myself lead you on. I don't love you Ginny and I can't let you believe I do anymore. It would never work out between us. You're a Weasley and I'm a Malfoy and there's no way that we could change that. _

_Please don't write back because I won't return any messages. I think it would be best if we just pretend none of this has ever happened. It would be easier for the both of us. _

_I should let you know that I've found someone. You'll meet her when I get back. Don't make this harder than it has to be. _

_-D-_

Ginny didn't notice her hands trembling, didn't notice the tears sliding down her cheeks leaving trails of heat in their wake, didn't notice that she had fallen to her knees until she was nearly pressing her forehead onto the cool wooden floor.


	18. Ch17: Home Sweet Home

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** This one was much easier to write than the last one and flowed a lot better from my brain through my fingertips, I hope it reads that way. Again, there are some parts where you want to skim because there's not a whole lot of dialogue but please refrain if you can.

**Author's Note: ** Here's the deal… Although I love you all very much, and your frequent reviewing motivates me to write, I can't possibly make you all happy and stick with the plot SO… hear me out:

Look about two inches up, see the pairings? See what it says? That's right. And I will maintain that. When you end this fic you will think "Ah! I get it!" Just remember in this world, the ends justify the means (and the plot knows where I sleep O.O). So although you all will hate me for who knows how many chapters it will take, you will get what you deserve for being such consistent readers and faithful reviewers.

_Chapter Seventeen: Home Sweet Home_

Ginny refused to leave her room the next morning. Narcissa had personally come up to check on her and Ginny had just handed the letter to her bitterly. After reading it Narcissa simply nodded and left Ginny alone, sending a house elf up every so often with a soothing draught and food. She hadn't eaten anything all day but she'd taken the soothing draught and a six hour dose of dreamless sleep. She'd have to attend the ball that day unless she wanted to come up with a way of displaying symptoms to an illness she didn't have, so she decided to get rest when she could take it.

She woke up to the setting sun and pushed back the covers. Slowly she sat up and watched as the shadow on the floor of her hair moved like the branches of trees shaking in the wind. She knew she was still in shock. Everything around her was moving too slow. The world seemed too right and too peaceful for this to have happened. Maybe she had dreamt it at some point last night. Maybe she hadn't taken dreamless sleep potions at all and maybe she just slept in.

She turned to look at her nightstand and found the letter sitting there, crumpled and boasting its terrible message. Sneering she grabbed it up, squeezing it in one hand into a ball as she picked up her wand in the other and lit the fireplace in her room. Walking over she tossed the note inside and watched as it burned.

The orange fire ate away at the paper until it was nothing but a memory.

Just like she and Draco now were.

Her bottom lip quivered and she rushed to the bathroom and started up her shower. She knew she would feel less silly for crying if she could pretend her tears were the water from the shower instead. As the water heated she grabbed hold of the tub next to it, her palms resting on the rim and her fingers grasping it tightly as she bent over it. She felt like she was going to be sick. Finally she felt the steam wafting over to her and began to undress.

She walked out of her bathroom thirty minutes later. She had taken a pepper-up potion and used a few potions to decrease her puffy eyes and do away with how bloodshot they were. She had dried her hair and used a spell she was familiar with now to sweep her hair into a simple up-do for fancy occasions like the balls. She wasn't in the mood to exert much energy into her look and left her makeup natural.

She found breathing laborious as she dressed, not quite willing to go down to the party. She knew she had to but facing all of those people with a fake smile on her face was something she wasn't sure she'd be able to do. She couldn't imagine how Narcissa did it. Everyday that she learned more and experienced more her respect for Narcissa grew. And now, upon finishing getting dressed and putting her shoes on, she would have to be like Narcissa and put on a good show.

She hated that she sounded like a pony in a circus but that's exactly what she had to do. She was bridled into a situation that prevented her from publicly believing what she wanted to and because of the damage it might do Narcissa and her family, she couldn't right the swelling gossip of the "reformed Weasley girl" who was living in the Manor with the Malfoys. Narcissa had kept most of the Prophets away from Ginny so she couldn't see what they were writing but eventually Ginny found out.

One reporter had even come close to guessing the truth that Ginny was really there to spy and didn't believe in anything like Lucius and Narcissa did, but Lucius himself had come out denounced that.

Ginny had come to know Lucius better living under his roof as well, and at times she wished she hadn't. She had never known just how much he suffered from insanity until she had seen him in action. Narcissa was battered and raped anytime she so much as stepped an inch over the line in front of any one of his friends and Draco was kept on so short of a leash he could barely breathe.

Ginny hissed at the pain in her gut as Draco once again drifted into her thoughts. He wouldn't stay away and although she hadn't been upset about that at first, she had actually felt better remembering the good times, she was now moving on through the acceptance phase and becoming bitter.

No.

No, she wouldn't let herself be bitter. She should've seen this coming.

As she left her room in the dark, shutting the door behind her as she stepped in the hallway she regretted only one thing.

She wished she hadn't fallen so in love with him before he left.

----------

The ball was carrying on like she expected it to. She and Narcissa had stood at the foyer greeting each and every guest as they walked through the door and introducing them to Claire and Laurent who were standing beside them. Lucius even made a few appearances before dashing into the living room once it was filled enough with creepy old men.

Ginny hated the people Lucius invited. All the men were Death Eaters and she had to dodge their attempts to fondle her at the drink table and make up excuses to not dance with them. Some, she couldn't get out of. The male Carrow, she'd forgotten his name, was very verbal about her beauty and made her skin crawl whenever she was in a three foot radius of him. Mr. Zabini still shot daggers via glaring at her from across the room and Blaise, thankfully was nowhere to be seen.

Her smile was long gone as she stood at Narcissa's side, keeping her drink constantly filled so that whenever someone was speaking to them they avoided asking her any questions. She couldn't risk letting her voice crack during those frequent times when she was biting back tears. Narcissa had even had to send her upstairs for something to give Ginny a few minutes to recover after someone mentioned Draco being away for so long and probably getting himself a girlfriend.

No matter what she did she couldn't avoid the truth and she hated it. Taking a deep breath, she had walked back downstairs and was swept into a dance with Mr. Crabbe again. He had actually become less perverted the more frequently the balls happened and wasn't a bad dancer. Ginny just had to make sure to get a dance in with him before the middle of the night to ensure he wasn't halfway drunk and touchy-feely.

After the music stop they separated and he bowed, commenting on how lovely of a dancer she was. She smiled kindly, nodded, and made for the garden. It was a beeline but she made good time getting there and felt immediately better out in the cold air.

She inhaled deeply and found the fountain with ease, sitting on the edge. She felt tired and lightheaded after being in the ballroom for so long. Pretending to be happy took more energy than she had originally anticipated. She leaned forward and pulled the skirt of dress tauter so she wouldn't wrinkle it sitting down. The dress was lovely, a pale green silk that wrapped around her body and clung to her curves in all the right places. It had only one strap on the left side but could somehow contain her bosom.

Sighing, she ran her hands over her face. If she'd had her way she wouldn't have woken up that morning. If she were lucky, she'd be able to bid goodnight to everyone early and force herself to sleep through the night with some more dreamless sleep draught.

"Ginevra?"

Looking up quickly she saw Laurent stepping towards her from the pathway leading back to the Manor. Smiling halfway, she dropped her hands and rested her elbows on her knees, crossing her arms in front of her. "Hello, Ren." She tilted her head to one side as he sat down beside her.

"Getting some fresh air, yes?" He looked up at the sky as he braced his weight onto his hands behind him.

Ginny nodded. "Something like that, yeah."

"It is a crazy night, no? Everyone inside just dancing and drinking away. I haven't been to a ball in so long, you see, this seems like it is all new to me."

"I bet." Ginny sighed, tapping her bottom lip with her fingers as she moved to rest her chin on her palm.

Laurent frowned. "Ginevra, what is it that makes you so sad? You are so different from yesterday."

Ginny's jaw clenched. She reminded herself that the first steps toward recovery included not denying the truth. Therefore, she should probably tell Laurent what had happened. She paused, hesitating with the fear that maybe he was working for Lucius gripping her heart. Well, it didn't matter. He was probably gay anyways, with how boys were now-a-days.

"I…" She stopped, pursing her lips. "That boyfriend I told you about?" She asked, raising her eyebrows. Laurent nodded. "Well he isn't my boyfriend anymore." She bit her bottom lip, thinking of how to go on.

"You see, I was writing him. And I guess I said some things that I shouldn't have, told him how I felt too early, and he sent me an owl yesterday saying we were over and he'd found someone else."

Laurent frowned. "I am sorry to hear this. Je sais mauvais que me sent." Ginny frowned and Laurent shook his head, smiling. "I know how bad it feels." He translated. "Remember? My prior girlfriend, she took my heart with her when she left me. Sometimes I wonder if I have gotten it back or not." He shrugged and sighed. "I think the beauty in love is that you must do so entirely in order to receive it. And even then you might not. My mother always told me it taught us humility."

Ginny smiled sadly in reply, feeling something stir in her. Her throat constricted, burning with the desire to fill the silence of the garden with sobs. Was she supposed to learn humility from this? She'd already been pretty full on the humility meter. She hadn't thought that she deserved Draco in all his greatness. She hadn't thought that she was beautiful enough for him or the world that she lived in but Narcissa and Draco both played her for fools if that wasn't true. They were the ones to put into her mind that she could rise above the surname that had so long made her poor, homely, and temperamental.

Ginny sighed and pushed a lock of red hair behind her ear. The noise from inside was filtering through the whispers of the leaves and she oddly felt comforted by the low level of white noise.

Laurent seemed to sense that at some point during their conversation Ginny had loss whatever happiness had been left and he stood. "You know Ginevra," He said, his French accent pronouncing her name like "Jeen-ev-rah" and smiling as he did so, "This boy that you were with was obviously no good for you. If he can throw away the love of someone so easily than he is an idiot and doesn't deserve you."

Ginny nearly blanched. Had this Frenchman acquired the power of Legilimincy in the short time that he was outside? Praying that it was just a typical male thing to say to a girl who had just been dumped, she cracked a sideways smile, eyes confused.

"You see all a man ever deserves is two things." He started. "They deserve the opportunity to make themselves better and they deserve the opportunity to be loved by a good woman." He nodded defiantly and put his hands on his hips. "This, this boy you were seeing is no man. Maybe some day but not yet. He is nothing but a rodent!"

Ginny couldn't help the bubbly laughter that floated out from her lips. The fact that Laurent referred to Draco as a rodent when Draco for some time had been best known to her as "bouncing ferret" was just too coincidental. Clutching her stomach, tears rolling over her eyelids in memory, she nodded and stood, steadying herself on Laurent's forearm. "Ren, you know how to make a girl feel better."

He smiled proudly. "I should, I have three sisters."

Ginny raised her eyebrows. "Really? I have six brothers, I win."

Laurent laughed and the tone of his voice and the warm waves of happiness that emanated from him made her feel a little better. It was as if she couldn't stay sad around Laurent who was so blindly trying to cheer her up. Something about him reminded her of Ron.

"Yes, I believe with six brothers you win. How could you possibly live all together in one house? I had three sisters and it was a trial for me to be with them in the house at once."

Ginny shrugged. "It's easy when it's my brothers. And three of them are already out of the house, two of them barely stay there anyways, so it's just me and my brother Ron. He's only a year older than I am."

Laurent smiled. "I bet that was nice. One thing I love was that my sisters were all younger than me. Suzette you see was two years younger, Alana was a year younger than her and then Sabrina was three years younger than her. I could protect them all from boys with bad intentions." He touched the side of his nose and they shared another laugh.

Behind her from the direction of the house was a distant pop and Ginny rolled her eyes. They had opened another bottle of champagne. Sighing, she knew that although she and Laurent were enjoying their conversation, this would be the most opportune time to say her goodnights and excuse herself. She had Laurent escort her inside and after they shared a dance which Claire demanded, Narcissa let Ginny go upstairs.

Maybe it was the drinks, maybe it was the hour, but Ginny had forgotten quite a few things on the walk upstairs to her room. She had forgotten the painful feeling inside her gut from losing Draco so out of nowhere. She had forgotten that when she walked back inside, no one had opened a new champagne bottle.

Later she would find that most importantly, she had forgotten or not noticed at all that Laurent had referred to all of his sisters in the past tense.

---------------

_Ginny,_

_You did marvelously at the party, I'm very proud of you. Trust me, I know how hard it is to carry on as if something tragic hasn't taken place. I have been in contact with your parents and I'm happy to inform you that you're going home today. Well, it's not really home but we'll talk about that when you wake up. I've already told the house elves to pack your things while you're at breakfast today so dress in what you'd like to wear when you go home._

_See you at breakfast. Laurent and Claire are out with Lucius this morning so it will be just the two of us. _

_-Narcissa_

Ginny felt a swell of joy inside her body eventually burst into a thousand pieces and cover her in happiness as she read the letter over and over again. She couldn't believe it. She was actually going home? Today? She kicked off the blankets from around her body and jumped out of bed. She ignored the chill the temperature of the room and how it brought goosebumps up on her skin. Running to her bathroom she showered faster than she ever had in her life.

She had convinced Narcissa that she really didn't need to wake up six thirty in the morning to be ready by eight thirty and had a personal alarm for seven fifteen instead. She made it to the dining room by eight and waited patiently in the hall (being too early could be a bad thing, Narcissa had told her), and eventually aforementioned woman appeared.

"Ginny! You're here early." She smiled knowingly and they walked in together.

"I couldn't help it." Ginny quickly got to her seat and lowered into it. "I mean, really? Today Narcissa? That's fantastic!" Ginny smiled broadly. This was exactly what she needed after the entire fiasco with Draco. They ate together and Narcissa explained that yes she was going to visit her parents, but it would not be at the Burrow.

"They've had to be in hiding you see, so they can't possibly be at your house. However, Minerva is coming over at noon to get you and take you to wherever it is they are."

Ginny frowned. "You don't know where they are?"

Narcissa smiled. "I don't, no. You do though. This is a place that you must be taken to by someone who knows where it is already and can get inside." Realization dawned on Ginny. She knew where her parents were.

Smiling, she nodded. Narcissa said a few words about how things were to be done, how Ginny would get there and such. It had been decided that Narcissa and Ginny would portkey Ginny's things to McGonagall's classroom and McGonagall would get them there. At noon, McGonagall would arrive at the Malfoy Manor and apparate with Ginny, taking her to see her parents.

"Do you know if any of my brothers will be there? Was anything mentioned of them?" Ginny set her fork down on the table, done with her food and looked up at Narcissa.

Narcissa's lips thinned into a small frown. "I'm afraid that didn't come up, though I'm sure there's a good chance that they will be."

Ginny nodded and finished her orange juice, excusing herself to go pack up some things she wanted to keep on her.

She got to her room and found her wand, setting it on her bed, pulled out a hair-tie from her bathroom kit and wrapped it around the grip of her wand and accio'd her sunglasses. She bit her bottom lip in thought. There seemed nothing else that she had to keep on her person while she was traveling. Snapping her fingers, she dug through her trunk and pulled out a robe. Springs months could be cold and if they were apparating, Ginny would have little time to adapt to the weather conditions of her destination.

After she had set her robe on her bed a house elf came in and shrunk her trunk and other luggage, taking it with her as she left. Sitting down on the edge of her bed, Ginny looked around her room. Even though a good deal of clothing and her essentials had been packed up, the room still looked like hers. She realized that the books in the bookcases, the desk, the nightstand, the chairs, event the window coverings somehow mirrored her personality.

She clasped her hands together. What would her parents think of her? Of course they would still love her and be happy to see her, but would they be upset that Ginny was acting differently? Would they feel like their only daughter was being brainwashed by the Malfoys?

She sighed, at least she didn't need to tell them about Draco anymore. Blinking back tears, she grabbed up her things and made her way to the drawing room where she and Narcissa were going to have one last lesson before her "Spring Break" and where McGonagall would meet them.

--------------

Ginny had to quickly regain control of her body, releasing the frazzled but grinning bespectacled woman from her grasp.

"Well, that certainly was a greeting I did not expect from a former student." Minerva McGonagall let a wrinkled hand settle over her heart. Her eyes gave away the enjoyment at seeing Ginny even if her words were still as professional as ever.

Ginny chuckled lightly, clasping her hands in front of her. She was so close to home now she could practically smell her mother's perfume or feel the fabric of her father's reading coat. She had been away so long that she was surprised that those memories had stuck with her. Maybe now, she thought, she could have some of her mother's famous stew again.

Narcissa smiled and offered a seat to McGonagall. McGonagall however, held up a hand and shook her head. "I'm afraid, Narcissa, that time does not appear to be on our side. I hate to say it but Miss Weasley and I must depart now to avoid any sightings. I wish we could stay longer,"

Narcissa smiled and it was her turn to shake her head. "No, no that's fine, Minerva. I understand."

McGonagall nodded, turned to Ginny and adjusted her glasses. "I'll be waiting in the foyer for you." She said and patted Ginny's shoulder. Turning back as she exited she called out, "I'll floo you, Narcissa, when we get her settled."

Narcissa waved goodbye to McGonagall and turned back to Ginny. Ginny realized then that she would not be seeing Narcissa for almost a week. Her stomach clenched and she crossed the room swiftly, wrapping her arms around the older woman's thin waist. Narcissa made maternal noises and embraced Ginny's shoulders, rubbing her back lovingly. "You have a good time while you're there." She whispered into Ginny's red mane.

Ginny nodded and pulled away, dabbing the edges of her eyes with her palms. "I'll miss you while I'm gone."

Narcissa smiled and Ginny thought that she had never seen the woman so happy and sad at the same time. She hadn't expected to bond to Narcissa the way she had, Narcissa had become like a second mother, or an aunt to Ginny. And now Ginny knew that what Narcissa had said in the beginning had been true. She had taken Ginny in to help but also because she had wanted another child.

"I'll miss you too, Ginevra. Promise me you'll be safe and mind your manners."

Ginny smiled brightly, eyes glistening with fresh tears and nodded. She slowly picked up her things and with one last smile to Narcissa, she walked into the foyer where McGonagall waited for her. Her former Head of House turned to her and waved her over. "I'm glad you've seen the truth, Ginevra." She whispered, rubbing Ginny's arm fondly. "I think it's the best thing that could've happened to you."

Ginny nodded, yes it was. She had figured out why things had happened the way they did. She understood now the hard choices the people around her had to make nearly a year ago and respected them much more for it. "Professor?" Ginny looked up into the woman's eyes.

McGonagall smiled. "I think you can just call me Miss for now."

Ginny smiled sadly. Right, no Hogwarts, no Gryffindor, no professors. "Right, do you know whether any of my brothers will be there?"

McGonagall smiled and took Ginny by the shoulder, leading her onto the front patio where they apparated before Ginny ever got her answer.

---------------

Ginny inhaled sharply as she looked up at the scene unfolding. Two empty Muggle houses were being pushed apart as if a giant had grabbed them and pulled on either side. Between them a building emerged and Ginny felt a swarm of memories wash up on her. Her eyes swept up the walk that led from the street to the battered, black painted door with a silver knocker in the shape of a twisted serpent.

Like she remembered, there was neither keyhole nor letterbox and the exterior of the house was still dirty, the windows grimy and revealing nonexistent shadows to the street.

Taking a step forward, she followed McGonagall through the entryway and nearly collapsed when she saw her father sitting in the drawing room, glasses poised on his nose and a book in his hands. "Dad?" She whimpered.

He turned to her and dropped his book on the floor, standing and maneuvering his way around the sofa. "Oh, Ginny…" He trailed off and pulled her into an embrace.

Just as she remembered, she thought. He was tall, thin, balding and his crooked nose reminded her of Fred and George. His robes smelt of dust and his cologne which ticked her nose. His reading robe was still soft and reminded her of the times they had stayed up late together while he read her something called "The Lord of the Rings". Her eyes were wet when they finally pulled back and she could barely make out shapes through her tears.

"Molly!" He called out, voice thick with his own joyous tears. Ginny turned to the kitchen and ran through the entryway, to find her mother setting the table. She looked up and promptly dropped all of the silverware from her hands. "Oh Ginny!" She exclaimed, bumping into the table with her hip as she made for her daughter. She was wearing what Ginny recognized as what Molly thought was her "good dress" and the apron Ginny had made for her.

The two embraced and Arthur came up and wrapped his arms around them both. Molly's sobs could still be heard from the huddle and McGonagall found this an appropriate time to coordinate with Kreacher (who had been brought back to Grimmauld Place after Hogwarts was made into a hospital of sorts) on where to put Ginny's things. The three Weasley's pulled back and the next ten minutes were spent on Molly fussing over how Ginny looked so different.

They were afterwards quickly drawn into a conversation of everything that had happened to Ginny since she arrived at Malfoy Manor and Ginny was only too happy to share. She started with the lessons, the tour, the dinners, the arduous schedule, her garden and then moved on to things like their visit to America, the Malfoys using Muggle utilities, and all of the balls.

"Learned to dance have you?" Arthur teased playfully and Ginny continued on, talking about how beautiful everything was and about how different people acted when they were at the balls. She even told them about how strange the Zabini's were, leaving out the tidbit about Blaise trying to force himself on her.

A soft cough came from the entryway to the kitchen and all three turned to look at where McGonagall now stood, hands behind her back. "I'm sorry to interrupt," she began, her accent prim and proper. "But I wanted to say goodbye." She turned to give Molly and Arthur both knowing looks. "I'll be returning again this afternoon at four." And with that she swept out of the front door and left Ginny and her parents to catch up alone.

After Ginny had spent a good two hours with her parents, Molly finally insisted that she had to start cooking and Arthur followed Ginny up the stairs to her room so she could show him some of her things. She pulled out assorted books and gadgets that the Weasley's were far too poor before the war to buy and Arthur muttered things to himself in amazement as he turned every item over in his hands, inspecting it.

Ginny grinned as he did so, taking that time to put away her clothes. All of her things seemed so out of place in the large dank house. She wondered, looking around at the dust that had collected since she had come in with her family to clean it out, how her parents had gotten along being so separated from everything. Ginny didn't know if she would have been able to do that, be away from everyone and everything.

She put away some casual dresses; most of what she brought had been sweaters and slacks, and put her shoes down at the bottom of a large wardrobe. She finished and looked back to find that her father had sat down on the edge of her bed, holding something in his hands. Ginny moved around and saw that it was the sweater her mother had knitted for her, the one she had been in after the Ministry attack.

She smiled and sat down on the bed next to her father. He looked over at her, eyes dewy with tears. "I didn't know you had taken this with you." He was rubbing the cheap fabric with the calloused pads of his thumbs. He smiled slightly. "I would've thought you'd want to leave this here."

Ginny frowned. "Why would I leave that behind? It's my favorite sweater."

"Even more than the new ones you've gotten?" He looked to her, worry etched in the lines on his face. He looked so old, she thought.

Ginny smiled, leaned into his shoulder and sighed. "Those new clothes could never compare to one of mum's sweaters. Never."

Arthur wrapped his around Ginny's shoulders and gave her a sideways hug, patting her back as he stood up. "Well I'm going to go help your mum with the dinner. Be down by four, alright?"

Ginny nodded and Arthur walked out of the room, leaving her door half closed for some privacy. Suddenly feeling very tired, Ginny set her wand to vibrate after forty minutes and set it on the bed side table. Laying down, she quickly fell into a light sleep.

A light buzzing sound woke Ginny up from her nap. She reached over and shook the incantation from her wand, letting it roll off the edge of the bed onto the floor. Slowly she pushed herself up on the bed and ran her fingers through her hair. She had left it curled for today, deciding that she wanted nothing more than to fit in seamlessly with her parents. She walked over to the door and frowned as she heard voices downstairs.

She remembered McGonagall had mentioned coming back at four and figured it was just her parents and her former professor talking. Walking down the stairs, she stopped once the front door came in view. "Ronny?" She gasped.


	19. Ch18: Spider's Webs

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** No, Draco doesn't come home in this chapter. Although I would love to push fast forward on this tale, get it all written super fast so Draco can come home and finally we can get some questions answered, problems solved, and other stuff done to complete this D/G circle… The plot still knows where I live. As such, this chapter is important because Ginny _did_ change while she was at the Manor and it's important to show that. It's also important to show how she didn't.

**Author's Note: **I would love nothing more than to give an accurate and detailed description of the finer workings of Draco's mind at the moment but I find that the story loses a bit of umph if you guys know too much too soon. Sit back, enjoy the ride, and be observant (as I have found via reviews that many of you have been). Oh and I'm not at 200 reviews!!! Woohoo!

_Chapter Eighteen: Spider's Webs_

Ron turned and looked up at her, eyes wide with surprise. "Gin?" He half shouted, a smile spreading over his features. Ginny didn't realize she had practically flown down the steps until she was wrapped in her brother's tight embrace.

"Oh, Ron I missed you so much!" She cried, arms firmly around his neck.

She felt him chuckle, squeezing her tightly in return. "Missed you too Gin!" They parted and she took him in for the first time since she'd left. He'd gotten taller and his shoulders were wider. He had definitely grown into his height but he was on the thin side. She assumed the voices she had heard were from her mother scolding Ron for not eating enough. Ginny wrapped her arms around her brother once more and sighed.

"I was hoping I'd be able to see you."

Ron ruffled her hair and they sat down in the living room. Ginny related her story to him, Narcissa meeting up with her and her parents in some abandoned building, the attack on the Ministry (Ron went pale when he heard Ginny had been there), the balls, the dinners, her experiences with Lucius, her lessons, meeting Pansy Parkinson's mother…

"And Malfoy?" Ron asked, something in his tone that Ginny thought was bitterness but sounded more like worry.

Ginny had to keep from taking a deep breath but shrugged. "It's hard to explain. We went about hating each other for a couple of months but living under one roof with someone isn't conducive to hating them." She bit her bottom lip. "It was strange, getting to know him. He's so much more sad than I would've ever guessed."

"We talking about the same bloke?" Ron needled.

Ginny smiled. "Surprisingly, yes. You know, I mentioned coming home to him and he said I was lucky. Lucky to have a family I missed. Said every time he went to Hogwarts he was glad to be away from home." She realized then that she hadn't told anyone yet about what she had learned about the Malfoys. She nearly shivered at the thought. "Oh, Ron, Lucius is awful to Narcissa and Draco both. It's as if… it's like if they don't fit into his plan for them they have to be punished."

Ron frowned and touched Ginny's arm which he always did to console her. He had always felt awkward being close with her, hugging her a lot. He had gotten used to being much larger than her and that he did have to be more delicate with her, instead of roughly shaking her shoulders or other signs of affection he displayed with her other brothers, he touched her arm to show he cared.

"I remember this one night-" She had to stop and wonder whether or not she wanted Ron to know the whole story. About Blaise and everything. She knew he would find out eventually for she rarely kept anything from Ron of all people.

She looked into his eyes, eyes like hers and realized why people thought they were twins. Their hair had miraculously taken the same shade of red their mother's had where all the other children had taken their father's hair coloring. Their faces were shaped the same, soft around the edges but pronounced facial features. They were both fairly tall, pale, and had big smiles.

"Ron I'm going to tell you something you can't tell mum or dad and I can't do it here where they could walk in on us." Ginny whispered. Ron nodded and they walked upstairs under the premise that she was going to show Ron her new things. They went into her room and she shut the door behind them, crawling onto the bed and sitting cross legged, Ron sitting at the foot.

"Well?" He asked expectantly.

Ginny prepared herself for what might come from this conversation. "There's a lot that happened. So I want you to try, to just let me finish first. I know it'll be hard for you but just try. Please?" Ron nodded and she started. "At the first ball I went to, it was sort of a 'here's Ginny everyone come and meet her' ball. Narcissa had told me that unless I could find another suitable partner that Draco would be my escort. Now this was right after I moved in and Draco and I hadn't found any common ground so of course I tried to think of a suitable escort.

"I couldn't think of anyone though. But one day the Zabini's came over, Blaise and his father and Blaise was very nice and very charming." The words stung on her lips and made her sick to her stomach to remember how foolish she had been. "I asked him to go to the ball with me and he said yes. That night everything was lovely until he escorted me to my room and…"

She had clearly paused for too long because Ron, she noticed now that she looked up at him, had gone very still, was pursing his lips so tightly they'd disappeared, and was extremely pale. "He didn't do anything but he tried." She hurried to explain and saw Ron relax just slightly. "He had ripped my dress and hit me so hard I was sure I'd go unconscious." She stopped looking Ron in the eyes for effect.

Maybe, just maybe she could tell him about Draco. Although Ron and Draco had a long-standing feud that would probably never end, he may be someone she could go to when she needed to talk about it. "Draco broke through my window, said he'd heard me scream, and ruined Blaise. Threw him out the door."

Ron's eyes widened but quickly resumed their normal size. _No doubt he's expecting me to say that Draco expected repayment,_ Ginny thought to herself. "He helped me that night, let me slip in his bed while he slept on the floor. Even though it was Draco, I just couldn't be alone that night, you know? And he wasn't a prat and didn't make any snide comments. I later asked him about having to hit someone that was his own friend and he said he'd do it again any day for what Blaise was doing."

"Let me get this straight." Ron said slowly, his fists unclenching for what must have been a long time since his knuckles were still white. "Blaise Zabini tried to… to… and Draco, he beat up his own mate to save you? And then he let you sleep in his bed?"

Ginny winced at how obvious it must've sounded. If she were Ron she'd think Draco wanted something in return too. "It wasn't like that Ron. I asked him to stay. I couldn't go back to my room and I couldn't be alone. I was too embarrassed to tell Narcissa about it and well, Draco had already helped me that night. Besides we stayed up most of the night playing chess." She grinned. "I won a lot from playing you, Draco is terrible at chess."

Ron had to keep from smiling a bit at the news. Ginny continued. "Anyways," She told him all about how Lucius treated Narcissa, about when she went to America with Narcissa and Draco and found out about Narcissa's secret love. By the time she was done explaining everything from America, to the ball where Blaise had gone after her again but Lucius had stopped him, she had arrived at one final thing to talk about.

Draco himself.

Ron sensed that there was something left Ginny wanted to say, knew it because she was his sister and they were so close that he sometimes wondered if he had mastered legilimency with her. "Gin, what is it?" He asked, patting her knee.

Ginny looked up at him and for a moment she questioned whether or not it was a good idea, the right thing to do, a smart decision to tell him all about Draco. Omitting a few intimate details of course, but explain how they had begun to become attracted to each other and now he was… Well, he was gone.

"Promise you won't freak?" Her eyebrows were knit in worry and all Ron could do was nod so that she would say what she needed to and stop looking so torn.

Ginny sighed. "Ron, Draco and I sort of started dating when we went to America."

Ron stood up quickly and turned around from facing her. Ginny nearly went into cardiac arrest as he stopped in the middle of her room, hand on his hip. He was mad at her, he was furious. She shouldn't have told him, it was a terrible idea. Her heart was pounding in her chest and she knew, she _knew_ he was going to tell their parents. For a second he stood there. "Ron?" She barely whispered.

Ron exhaled raggedly. "I'm sorry, Gin, it's just I wasn't expecting that." His words were a little robotic. But then something happened, he turned to her and he just looked tired. "Or actually, I guess I was, I just wanted to think it wasn't going to happen."

"What do you mean you were expecting it?" Ginny was a little taken aback from his words and more so she was confused.

"I had talked to Hermione about it, she said it might happen. Two of you living in the same house so close in age, blah, blah, blah." He pushed out his bottom lip like he was prone to do when he knew he had been wrong about something with Hermione. "Told her she was wrong, said you were…" He stopped himself, thank god. Ginny wouldn't have been able to hear him say something like _'said you were smarter'_ or _'said you were inherently good and couldn't be attracted to someone like Malfoy'_.

"Ron you have to understand, Draco's not the same person he was in school. I don't think he ever was that person. That was just a way to cope."

Ron half sneered but controlled himself. "Gin, come on. Everyone's known that if you've been sorted into Slytherin it's for a reason. I'm not saying he's evil I'm saying that he was probably sorted in there because he could manipulate people. He could manipulate situations. He knew how to hide all of his dirty little secrets by using those of other people. I agree it was probably because of what you told me and it's terrible that it happened to him but what do you want me to say? Congratulations? Should I expect him to following you here?"

He seemed serious and this, she knew, was where things would take a turn that could either infuriate her brother further or make him gleeful. "No because for your information we aren't together anymore." She said quietly, staring at her hands.

Ron made an 'O' shape with his mouth and sat back down on the bed. Ginny couldn't quite read the expressions that crossed Ron's face after the first few. The first, of course, was relief. The second however was guilt that he had felt that and from there things just got complicated and Ginny quit trying to keep up. "I'm sorry Gin." He looked at her sideways.

"We'd been dating since we'd gotten back from America and then his dad tells him that it's time for Draco to go to Death Eater training." Ginny spat the words more bitterly than she had intended. "He left the first of December. He dumped me yesterday." She finished and stood, crossing to one of the grimy windows and crossed her arms in front of her chest.

They sat there in silence for a few minutes before Ron wrapped his arm roughly around her shoulder and pulled her against his side. "You'll get on okay, you always do. Besides if he was daft enough to think he could find anyone better than you than he doesn't deserve you."

Ginny smiled and rested her head on Ron's shoulder. Leave it to Ron to be able to cheer her up. She never understood why, but he was amazing at it.

Just then noise filtered up from downstairs and Ginny's head snapped up. "What's going on down there?" She frowned. She took off for the door, and walked into the hall. She stopped; knowing that behind her Ron was smiling. Slowly she turned back to look and yes; he was biting his bottom lip in effort to hide a smirk. "Oh how could you not tell me you terrible excuse for a brother!" She exclaimed and took off down the stairs again.

She lunged first at George, who was closest to the stairs and not expecting her small body to be thrown on his back. He nearly fell over but caught himself, turning his head to see her. "Damn Gin, you've gotten heavier!" He teased.

"Oh, George." Hermione tsked. Ginny unhinged herself from her brother and hugged Hermione. "Missed you so much." Hermione whispered in her hair. Ginny could only nod in reply.

She then turned to Fred and punching him in the arm first, she hugged him as well. She pulled back and looked around. "Did Harry not come?" She frowned.

"Harry's here!" A familiar voice called from around the corner and as she turned she saw Harry emerge. He looked tired, she thought, like he had been without sleep the entire time he had been away. They embraced and for a moment Ginny wished she could take all his sadness away.

They pulled back and she rubbed his arm affectionately. "It's good to see you've still got color in your cheeks." She mentioned in a maternal fashion quite like her. Turning back to where Hermione and Ron stood curiously close to each other she added, "I've been worried about you three."

"What no concern-"

"-for your loving brothers?" Fred and George teased, both ruffling her hair simultaneously. She chuckled and swatted at them.

"You don't need it! I have more concern for your victims than you two!" She replied.

They exchanged more colorful barbs in the safety of the living room would prevent Molly Weasley from scolding them for dirty language.

She was home. Ginny Weasley, or Ginevra Weasley, or whoever she was had finally come home. She sighed as she looked around the room; apparently it had been a meeting up for them as well. Ron was in deep conversation with Arthur in the corner about something. Ginny feared for a moment that it was about Draco until Ron caught her gaze and sent her a smile.

Fred and George were sharing repartee with Hermione and then Ginny realized that Harry had disappeared. Frowning, she looked around the room and sure enough his figure was gone. She got up from her seat and checked the kitchen, finding just her mother there fussing over dishes and muttering to herself.

Ginny climbed the stairs and found Harry in the room he had stayed in while under the surveillance of the Order. She leaned against the door frame and watched him reach out and touch the bed sheets. "All right?" She said softly so as not to startle him.

He turned quickly, a blush crawling on his rough cheeks from being caught in such a vulnerable moment and he smiled. "Yeah." He nodded.

She crossed the room and sat on the bed, Harry following suit. She and Harry had long since mended the distance between them from the whole "Cho" situation and from their failed relationship. They found that although they _worked _as a pair, they simply worked _better _as good friends, if not practically brother and sister. Ginny had always had an inherent sense of telling when Harry was in a mood and was honest with him when others were walking on eggshells.

He had been the only person she could bond with over what happened in the Chamber, though none of it was truly public. Over the summers when would visit the Burrow or during school when they happened to find themselves in the common room together, the subject had come up. It was refreshing to her to find someone else who could understand how an experience could make her feel so tainted.

Now they sat on Sirius' old bed in a filled silence that said everything they didn't have to. Everything would be fine, everyone would be fine, and they were still there for each other. Ginny leaned over and rested her head on Harry's shoulder and he did the same in resting his cheek against the top of her head. "You?" He asked.

Thrown off guard, for although Harry was a wonderful person he was terribly inept at returning questions concerning other people. Ginny's shock was more apparent that she had hoped for Harry smiled when she had lifted her head.

Returning his smile she nodded as he had. "Yeah."

------------

Dinner had gone better than she had expected. Fred and George cracked more jokes than most professional comedians did in their act, Ron and Hermione attempted to hide that they were holding hands from under the table but Ginny was sitting on that side and couldn't be fooled (she did keep their secret though). Harry actually smiled and despite themselves, Molly and Arthur exhaled for once in what seemed like forever.

It wasn't the Burrow, and it wasn't all of the Weasleys, but for the short time that everyone was there that night it was perfect.

Fred and George had left first, citing that they really needed to get back into town. Ginny had asked how they were doing, having to pretend their parents were dead, and they both shrugged in unison. It seemed life was easier for them than she had thought. Ron, Hermione, and Harry had stayed later but left before eight that night. Ginny found herself wrapped in the bedcovers of her own room and asleep before ten.

----------

Ginny's eyelids protested with the small amount of sunlight that pushed through the grime on the windows, but she was awake nonetheless. Sighing, she pushed back the covers and slowly sat up, head spinning with all the excitement from the day before. She swayed side to side, still half asleep as she went into the hall and washed up. She pulled her hair up into a messy bun and after splashing her face with some cold water, was able to make her way downstairs without tripping.

Her mother was already almost through cooking breakfast, potatoes and sausage, and her father was reading _The Prophet_ at the table. "Oh, Dad, don't you know not to trust that stuff?" She frowned. The magazine had quickly fallen under the influence of Voldemort and the likes.

Arthur took off his glasses and smiled sadly. "Sometimes it's the best way to get the news." He replied and patted her hand as she sat down at the table.

"You went to sleep quite early last night, you feeling alright?" Her mother worried, pausing from her cooking to reach over and pressed her forearm to Ginny's forehead.

Ginny patted her mother's arm lovingly and pushed it away. She laughed and shook her head, "Mum, I'm fine. I was just really tired after seeing everyone yesterday, it was quite a shock."

"We did have a full house last night." Arthur nodded in agreement and folded the magazine in his hands, setting it aside. Just then Molly came by and set the sausage and potatoes on the table.

Ginny reached forward and filled her plate, followed by Arthur and then Molly when she sat down. "Are there any surprises planned for today?" Ginny looked over at her parents. They both paused and Molly quickly took a sip of coffee to avoid having to answer. Arthur smiled.

"If we told you, it wouldn't be a surprise now would it?"

Ginny grinned and went back to her breakfast. They ate around conversation and once Ginny finished she excused herself. Darting upstairs, she dug through her things for her bathroom bag and upon finding it, grabbed up her spare clothes and ran to the bathroom. She turned on the water and let the bathroom fill with steam before she made a move to undress. She sat on the toilet, head against the wall and eyes closed.

With a deep breath she opened her eyes and took off her pajamas. She hissed as the warm water ran over her body and adjusted the temperature so it was cooler. Inching more and more under the water she was finally fully beneath it and turned so her hair could get wet. Closing her eyes, she let her thoughts drift.

She wondered if she should write Draco back, just to make sure he was sure about the decision, maybe try to convince him to at least talk to her first. But then again, his owl had asked her to act as if nothing had happened. Maybe… Maybe, she thought, he was with this girl because his father had wanted him to be. Maybe that's why she couldn't act as if anything had happened, if she did it would give the fact that they were together away. Maybe he was in some kind of trouble.

She bit her lip and shook her hair to loosen the curls. She filled her hand with shampoo and tried to force her curls into submission. There was just no way to convince herself that Draco broke up with her without having a reason. But what reason that was, well, that was an entirely different matter. He just simply could not have broken up with her like that, after all their conversations and all they had been through, not unless Lucius had something to do with it.

She grunted angrily. She knew the more she thought about it, the more she would get frustrated. She turned to reach for her face wash and knocked over almost every bottle on the ledge. She was sure her mother and father could hear her scream from the kitchen.

She had to stop thinking of Draco before it ruined her visit home.

------------

Ginny looked up from her book as Arthur cleared his throat. "Ginny," He began; cheeks pinched as he fought back what Ginny hoped was a grin.

"Yes?" She quirked an eyebrow in question.

"Would you mind going and getting something from upstairs? There's a box in Sirius' old room on the bed, can you bring it down?"

Ginny's other eyebrow joined the first and she slowly closed her book. "Sure…"

She left the room with a glance to her mother who was trying to keep herself busy cleaning things she had previously just gotten done washing. Frowning, Ginny took two steps at a time up the stairs and peeked into Sirius' room. There was absolutely nothing on the bed but a thin layer of dust. Rolling her eyes, though thoroughly curious as to what was going on, she made her way back downstairs.

"Alright, Dad, what's the deal?" She called as she neared the entryway into the kitchen. "There wasn't any…" She trailed off, jaw going slack. "Merlin's beard." She whispered to herself as she stepped into the kitchen.

"Hello Miss Weasley."

Ginny gripped the banister with a tight fist and she felt her throat go a bit dry, a small smile playing at the corners of her lips. "Professor Snape."

-----------

If there was one scene Ginny wouldn't have been able to foresee was Molly, Arthur, and Ginny Weasley hosting Severus Snape at the dinner table at the Order of the Phoenix headquarters. Many things had turned Ginny's mind upside down, from the truth Narcissa had told her about the night Dumbledore had died, to the memories she had about Snape that were becoming all of a sudden very clear.

She had never thought twice about the grades he had given her, the critiques, and whatnot. But upon remembering, as she did after the day Narcissa told her the truth, Snape had punished her much less than any other student she could think of. Her grades, though not sterling, were always relatively equal to her Slytherin counterparts and his criticism always held at least one compliment.

She also discovered, after talking with Harry, that there were many things Snape may have alluded to even to Ron, Hermione, and Harry. There were times when he would give Hermione the grade she deserved or pass on humiliating her brother for rolling his eyes. After Sirius died, Snape didn't say a word to Harry for the whole first month of her fifth year. Even Remus had pointed out that Sirius had made the wolfsbane potion for him so perfect that he suffered less than ever before.

Now, sitting at the dinner table and watching Snape have pleasant conversation with her parents, she wondered if the Snape she thought she knew back in school actually ever existed at all.

"Professor?" Ginny asked during a moment of silence. Snape sipped at the stew Molly had conceded to make at Ginny's request, then put his spoon down to listen. Ginny worried her bottom lip but kicked her courage into gear. "I was wondering… well, where you'd been all this time. I mean you weren't here when I got here and it seemed you'd never been. I understand if you can't say, I was just curious is all." Ginny stared at her stew, her face burning.

_Well, at least if you didn't sound rude you sounded absolutely childish!_ She scolded herself.

Snape, however, smiled and folded his hands in front of him on the table. "Well, I can't say for certain which place I was at the longest. I traveled from city to city and stayed with different people. I've got to be careful to leave no traces of magic and the like."

Ginny nodded. "But you've been in safe houses, yeah?"

Ginny missed the smile on her mother's face. Snape nodded, smiling in the small way that he knew how in response to such apparent concern. "Yes, they were safe houses." He said no more and Ginny understood that he really couldn't. Ever since she had known Snape, he always had reasons to omit parts of the conversation or a conversation entirely. He was the man who knew everything and kept his mouth shut about it.

She wondered momentarily, as they all resumed eating, what kind of life that was… to know something and not be able to say it.

She realized in that moment that she truly admired Snape. He had done so much for the people she cared for and was hated for it in return. She knew now what kind of sacrifice he had made in order to keep a spy safe within the ranks of the Death Eaters, she knew now how carefully he had watched over her and her friends while in school. How he had cared for Draco as well…

As they always did her thoughts flitted back to Draco. She should really stop. This was becoming an unhealthy obsession. She would talk to him if she could whenever he got back. That was the resolution. She wouldn't beg him to come back to her, she wouldn't demand that he tell her exactly what was going on, but she would talk to him at least. Maybe then, if she saw that he was sincere and that he didn't mean ill will but was just searching for someone different… maybe then she could find closure.

They finished eating their stew. Snape stayed for maybe an hour afterwards and when he finally had to leave, Ginny was allowed to walk him out.

They stopped at the door and Snape turned to her. "Tell me something, Ginevra."

Ginny looked up at the man with his long hair, his billowing robes that were dirty and torn at the hems, the lines of exhaustion on his face. "Professor?" She asked, calling him his title out of habit.

His lips quirked but she wondered if she'd actually seen it or imagined it. "Tell me, how you're doing. And I want you to be honest. Narcissa has informed me of Draco leaving and of your recently received owl."

_How does he know absolutely everything?_ She shouted in her mind. Nothing, positively nothing, could be kept from Snape no matter where he was. Ginny smiled and looked down at her folded hands. "Let's just say I'm getting along. There's a lot I don't know, a lot I don't understand and some of it…" She trailed off, biting her lower lip. "A lot of it I think wasn't exactly up to Draco."

Had Narcissa been there Ginny surely would have been struck down for using the phrase 'a lot' three times in one sentence. Snape, however, nodded understandingly and turned to leave out the front door. Ginny saw that McGonagall was waiting on the walk for him, probably to apparate with him. Snape stopped and turned back. He paused, considering something, his hands clasped behind his back as they normally were.

"Understand something Ginevra," He began, his brows furrowed in thought. "There are many, many strings that span the world in which the Malfoys live. They cross over and touch everything at least once, usually more, and they all lead to one place. They make a web and in the center where they meet, is Lucius. He creates and manipulates the world around him. I can not say for sure what is going on but I have every faith that Lucius' hands are somewhere. Never trust him, never close your eyes to him. He must have everyone in his web."

With those cryptic words Snape was gone with McGonagall and Ginny shut the door to the cold wind blowing outside. She slept dreamlessly that night, tossing and turning in her sheets.


	20. Ch19: Shop Around

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Some of you have shown concerns over Ginny rolling over and taking the whole break up thing pretty well. Yes, she's only spent the last six days getting over the whole ordeal but this is a testament to how Ginny has changed as a person. She would normally burst into a bat-bogey-hexing ball of flames, but instead she's trying to "make the best out of the situation" by convincing herself that she's over him (which of course she's not). She's relying on her survival to get her through, the need to carry on, all that other junk. This chapter will explain a lot.

**Author's Note:** I have tried most adamantly to get this story on FIA but it proves a failure every time. It could be my e-mail address or it could be that the admins are busy with other things but I will continue trying, I promise. I love FIA and it would be an honor in my eyes to be featured on that site.

_Chapter Nineteen: Shop Around_

Draco hissed in the cold of his cell. It wasn't a room anymore; this training facility had long since become a prison to him. It was unnecessary now. He was far too powerful to _need _to be there, but it would be awfully rude to excuse him the last few months just because he was stronger, smarter, faster, and more manipulative than all of the other fresh recruits. He bent his head down and massaged his arm lightly where he had been prepped for the Dark Mark.

They had burnt his arm, scarred it for life so he wouldn't be vain enough to refuse the mark. As if he would. No one in their right mind bold facedly defied the Dark Lord.

Draco felt the muscles in his hand twitch and then seize with strain. He flexed his fingers robotically, used to this by now. The curses that had been laid on him were much worse than usual. He smiled bitterly. He supposed he deserved them. His smile fell as memories flooded his mind. Raging, growling, he stood and with a burst of wandless magic made his bed explode. His pitiful excuse for sleeping arrangements lay in splinters around his room.

They wouldn't repair it for him and he didn't bother to do it either. He would sleep on the floor.

-----------

Ginny had spent roughly five days at the Burrow and each day had been just as precious as the one that had come before it. The first day she had arrived, she'd seen Ron, Hermione, Harry, Fred, and George as well as her parents. She'd been immensely relieved to see them all in good health and relatively good spirits. She had to admit though, when it came to her parents, they could lighten up a room like they weren't pretending to be dead in the middle of a war.

Ron had provided her with the correct dosage of brotherly over-protectiveness that she had craved while she was in a way, an only child at the Manor. Fred and George had been so tightly wound with excitement that while they spoke there was no hope of her thoughts drifting to less joyous news. Hermione hadn't asked her probing questions but gave her those knowing looks that said if Ginny needed, she was there.

And Harry had been decidedly less depressed than he had ever been. Her first day home had been a complete success in her eyes.

The second day proved a surprise. With Snape's visit, Ginny felt like a void had been filled. She knew he was alive, knew he was still fighting the good fight, and knew that he still had a soft enough spot in his greasy, cold heart for her that she could actually cause him to twitch (the closest he came to a smile).

The third day she was able to spend mostly with her mother and, although it was out of the usual, Ginny shed a few tears at night that day thinking about how happy she was that her mother was Molly Weasley. She had never been fully aware how dependent she was on the love and care that she got from her mother until she had been away from home for so long.

The fourth day she and her father sat in the front room and read together. Their relationship was unique in that they bonded over silence instead of conversation, like she and her mother did. When the flames in the fireplace died to a few sparks and cracks from the logs, they set their books aside. They had then indulged conversation and had talked about so much. She had gone over in review her time at the Manor and for once, her father told her about how the war was actually going.

He told her that Harry, Ron, and Hermione had stopped by frequently for a time, and then left again. They'd even gone back up to the school. Ginny asked why but he didn't know. She was relieved to learn that they were still pursuing the end of Voldemort. She loved the Manor, she loved Narcissa, but she just didn't love the condescending company they had to entertain in order to keep up appearances.

Then on her fifth day, she packed up, ate a last breakfast with her parents who both cried, and was apparated away with McGonagall.

With a sigh she rolled over on her bed thinking about the week she'd had at home as compared to her return to the Manor.

When she returned to the Manor she was informed that everyone was gone. Lucius had taken Laurent somewhere, Narcissa and Claire had disappeared into the world of society and Ginny was left to herself in the Manor. She had gone down to the garden, messed around in the dirt to find that the house elves had kept up with the weeds while she'd been away, explored the library, walked nearly all the floors, and finally decided to try to go to sleep.

The sun was still out, but it had already started to brush the horizon with light. She drew her bottom lip in between her teeth and adjusted her head so it rested atop her pillow that covered her arm. Closing her eyes, she let a wave of relief sweep over her. For some reason she could not explain, she felt safer here at the Manor than she did with her parents at Grimmauld Place. She figured it was probably because Grimmauld Place was so close to the war and it seemed the Manor was so far removed from it.

No matter how many times she had tried to imagine the politics that ran about the ballroom company, she had never once seen those sorts of conversations in action. Could it be that they were just very well hidden? Or were the balls an escape from all the politics?

Rolling over again, settling, she drifted off to sleep.

------------

The next morning Ginny felt the waking world slip its grasp around her. She could tell by the way her skin was covered that she had fallen asleep the night before without changing out of her day clothes. Frowning, she opened her eyes slowly, the sunlight casting beams of yellow on the wall opposite of the window. She was glad to wake up facing the wall, maybe she wouldn't suffer from temporary blindness looking out her bedroom window.

Sitting up she threw her legs over the side of the bed and saw a familiar crisp parchment rolled up and on her bedside table. Reaching for it, she yawned and pushed her arms into the air, stretching, before putting the parchment on her lap and reading it.

_Ginevra,_

_I'm sorry I couldn't be home for your arrival but Claire had to attend to some business and needed my help last minute. I hope your time at home went well. Remember, if Lucius asks you went to America for me to retrieve some medicine. He can't know that your parents have survived. I'm sorry this is so difficult for you. _

_Today I thought it would be nice if you and I spent some time in the gardens with Claire and Laurent. I'd very much like you to show Claire your gardens, she'd be fascinated with all the hard work you've put into it. Lucius will be away so it will be the four of us for lunch and dinner, but tomorrow night he's having some important friends over. I'll explain further during our lessons today. _

_I hope you didn't go to sleep hungry last night, I didn't see you for dinner. Please try to make it for breakfast so I know you're eating, anorexia is so unbecoming you know._

_-Narcissa_

Ginny grinned at the note and set it on the mattress beside her. Narcissa was unique in the way she showed concern. She wasn't outlandish and public about it like Molly Weasley but she wasn't silent and subtle in the way Arthur Weasley was, no, Narcissa had a way all of her own.

Standing, she gathered up the outfit she'd want to wear for the day, a navy darted blouse, brown riding slacks, and brown knee-high boots. As she showered a thought occurred to her. She was actually looking forward to seeing Laurent and Claire. Since the breakup she hadn't particularly been one for company but since her visit home, her spirits had raised considerably. Could it be that she was finally working through her unrequited feelings for Draco?

Intrigued and excited about not repeating the same mistake with Draco like she had Harry, Ginny took extra care that day to make herself presentable. She didn't feel the stabs of guilt when she looked in the mirror and noticed she was rather attractive with her hair half up, she didn't feel the drop in her stomach when she saw certain things Draco had once spoken of, in fact, she realized with slightly audible gasp that she hadn't really thought of Draco Malfoy for slightly more than thirty six hours.

Although she missed him dearly, and everything he stood for in their relationship, she was seeing that if he wanted to be with someone else, she wouldn't interfere. In fact, she wouldn't do anything. She'd let him be who he wanted to be, Death Eater or no, let him date who he wanted to date, and would return what kindness he showed her with the dignity and manner Narcissa had taught her. With a defiant nod, she grabbed up her brown headband and set it on her head before exiting the room and making her way to the dining room for breakfast.

She stepped into the room and was greeted by Laurent who was inspecting a painting hanging on the wall at the other end of the room. "Good morning Ginevra!" He exclaimed, his French accent making her smile. He clasped his hands behind his back and walked over to her. "And how was this _America?" _He asked, winking. For a moment she was confused as to what he was insinuating but then remembered that she had clued him in on her cover up for going home.

Her smile spread across her face and for a moment she thought she hadn't smiled like that in a while. "Oh it was wonderful, I really couldn't have asked for anything better." She passed the few minutes before Narcissa and Claire arrived having conversation with Laurent, then they all sat at the table and ate.

Breakfast flew by and soon they were outside, Ginny elbow-deep in soil explaining to Claire the finer properties of 'blood meal' and the importance of right lighting.

"It is amazing how much you have learned about these gardens, Ginevra." Claire was shaking her head with a smile on her lips. "And they are all absolutely beautiful."

Ginny smiled as the woman cooed over the blooming floras surrounding them. "I had time on my hands after class and idle hands are often the leading cause of ignorance as my mother used to say…" Ginny trailed off, biting her bottom lip.

Before she could become completely engrossed in panic, thinking that her comment on her mother had somehow proven she had gone to see them, Narcissa cleared her throat. "She was a pleasant woman. I'm sorry we lost her." Ginny nodded and turned away, feigning sadness but feeling her chest release the uneasy tension it once bore. She had to be more careful! She'd become lax in her thoughts while she was at Grimmauld Place, not needing to keep up a façade day and night for safety. Now she had to go back to being an adopted orphan.

"A pity, she sounds like a remarkable woman. Especially if she could raise such a bright young lady." Claire added sweetly and sipped at her tea. Soon Claire and Narcissa excused themselves to go inside and talk privately and Laurent offered to help Ginny with finishing up her chores in the garden.

Grateful for the help, though she loved to do the chores sometimes they could get overwhelming now that her gardens had grown to three times their original size, Ginny instructed Laurent on how to check the soil for moisture and to sprinkle the fertilizer. Laurent completed his task sooner than Ginny thought, taking less than thirty minutes to do the sizable amount of botany. She had been so preoccupied with inspecting curious patterns on the petals of her flowers, "Must be those blasted worms again…", that she didn't notice Laurent come up behind her.

"Regarder hors!" He shouted, placing his palms flat against her cheeks from behind her, mud smearing against her skin. Ginny blinked for a moment, shocked that he snuck up so quietly then immediately burst into a fit of giggles.

"Laurent! How sneaky!" And with that she began picking up dirt from nearby and tossing it by the fistfuls at him. In no time at all both were a tone of brown and dirty from head to toe. Still chuckling, and slightly breathless, Ginny pulled out her wand and cleaned them both up. "Better not give Narcissa or Claire reason to think we can't be left alone without destroying things."

"Claire knows me far too well to expect something different." Laurent dismissed smoothly, smiling broadly in the setting sunlight. "I think that is the most fun I've had in a very long time. I must thank you for not being offended by my trick."

Ginny laughed and sat down beside him, admiring the way the colors of her garden glowed with the sun behind them, as if they were lights and someone had just flipped the switch. "Six brothers remember?"

"Ah, yes, I underestimate you." He paused for a moment, considering something and looking away. "I had meant to ask, but I did not want to pry…" He trailed off.

"What is it, Ren?" Ginny pressed, curious of what he could be wondering about.

"Do you feel better now? That you had gone home I mean? I know you were very sad about this break up you went through. I wanted to know how you were doing." His eyes met hers and for a brief moment Ginny saw something pass behind them, like shadows against a mirror, but they were gone too quickly to be sure.

Ginny shrugged. "We hadn't been together for a very long time. I mean, in a way we had. I'd grown up with him practically. I'd never thought about it before like that until I came here but despite being in different houses at school and different years, I saw him everywhere. He was a constant in my life. While I was here we had a chance to become closer and when we did it was like I had been given this opportunity to read the translated version of a very popular book no one else could read."

Laurent nodded as if he understood, smiling. "It is amazing what time can do to change your mind."

Ginny sighed. "How right you are. I guess the hardest part of the breakup was how sudden it was. You know, Draco was a very private person and wouldn't divulge his life secrets to just anybody. It seems so strange to me that he would just breakup with me right after sharing so much. It doesn't make sense."

"Ah, but remember what I said? It is amazing what time can do to change your mind. He was in a different place than here, facing different circumstances. I do not mean to be offensive but when you put two people together alone, no matter how big the house, they will always come together like magnets. It is inevitable. Human nature. We like to share our lives even if we do it in the most inconspicuous ways."

Ginny felt a knot form in her gut. Had Draco only been interested in her because they were the only two people in the house close in age? Was it a matter of location and proximity, not likenesses that drew them together? Did she even love him? What if her feelings were a farce as well? No, they couldn't be. Or they'd have gone away just like his had. But she still felt the desire to be around him, to have hold her…

She had to stop thinking about things like that. She had promised herself that she would get over him, and get over him she would. Regardless of how many times her pace slowed as she crossed in front of the hallway to his door, despite how many times she remembered what it felt like to have him fly her around on his broom, and most of no matter how little she wanted to. Maybe Draco really was just tricked into caring for her by circumstance, but she couldn't say the same for herself.

"Ginevra?"

Ginny shook her head, snapping back to reality. "Sorry, I was just thinking."

"I didn't want to offend you." Laurent's features quickly changed to a concerned frown. "I didn't want to upset you. I could be wrong, I should be. There's no reason he wouldn't like you. You are in fact very beautiful and smart, you're funny. There's nothing he wouldn't like about you."

Ginny smiled, patting his arm lightly. "Don't worry, I just thought you had a plausible explanation. I'm not upset, I was just considering. Sometimes it's nice to have a lot of different reasons to choose from for why things happen."

Laurent nodded, seemingly swayed that he had not caused for some reason a rift in their budding friendship. They changed the subject and talked a bit more until it was nearly dark out. They bid farewell to prepare for dinner and Ginny decided she'd take another shower even though there wasn't a speck of dirt on her. It was the principle of the thing, she reasoned. As she turned on the water and let it warm up, she began undressing.

It would've been a perfect time to go over her conversation with Laurent, to realize that most of what he said might have had a double meaning, but she knew she was just being paranoid. Maybe, she ventured… No. It was too soon to think about shacking up with another boy.

_It wouldn't be shacking up, what a terrible phrase._

_Well it's still too soon anyway, it's only been what, a week since Draco dumped me?_

_More than enough time to cope with the fact that Draco's blind to my worth. Like Ren said, if he can't see all the amazing qualities I have he doesn't deserve me._

_But what about my sneaking suspicions that Draco didn't initiate the whole break up? What if Lucius really is behind all this?_

_Occam's Razor, dear. Simplest solution is most often correct._

_Lucius can be an outstandingly simple solution to all of this. He is, in fact, the spawn of Satan._

_And Voldemort would be what then?_

_Satan, duh. I can't forget what Snape said, Lucius controls this house with his web of deceit, lies, and manipulative cunning. He has control over everything. _

_Would Laurent even be interested in me?_

_Well, he did compliment me quite a bit back there. That wasn't exactly subtle. Maybe if I just flirted a bit to see…_

_But it's too soon… Or is it?_

Grunting in frustration, Ginny jumped in the shower and nearly scalded herself before adjusting the temperature of the water. Her thoughts drifting back to a possible relationship, she was blissfully unaware that she had accidentally named Draco while talking to Laurent. What was even more curious was that Laurent didn't even seem surprised.

-----------------

Dinner the next day had barely been endurable to Ginny. It turned out the guests were Antonin Dolohov and Rookwood (whom Ginny had seen quite enough for her lifetime). What made dinner all the more miserable was that Dolohov felt it necessary to apologize to Ginny for killing her uncles and hurting Hermione in the Department of Mysteries. There had been an odd silence as the realization that Ginny had in fact been there and fighting for Harry Potter set in at the table. Claire had made some noncommittal comment about the food and changed the subject, at which Ginny nearly dropped to the ground and kissed the woman's feet.

Afterwards Dolohov even had the gall to slap her on the shoulder and tell her she was forgiven because now she was a Malfoy. She thought he'd even brought up making her a Death Eater but couldn't be sure, he'd said some sort of phrase like "always looking for powerful young witches" but Lucius had cleared his throat which ended that conversation. Ginny had politely excused herself, Laurent saying he'd have to be excused as well, and the two of them escaped to the gardens.

"I don't know how many awkward dinner table conversations I can have before I go bloody insane." Ginny grumbled, collapsing on a bench nearby. She covered her face in her hands, elbows poised on her knees as she practically doubled over in mental exhaustion.

Chuckling beside her, Laurent seated himself and crossed one leg so his ankle rested on the opposite knee. "Poor Ginevra, you were the unlucky target tonight." He patted her shoulder affectionately before stretching catlike with a yawn. "It is amazing how long they can all talk about things that don't mean anything." He muttered, resting his arms across the back of the bench.

"I never even knew Dolohov knew a thing about Quidditch in the first place!" Ginny exclaimed, looking over at Laurent and smiling feebly. With a smile in her direction, Laurent just shook his head. They sat in silence for a few moments before heading up to their rooms.

---------------

"Ginevra must you really embarrass me so!" Claire dusted her hands off. "I must go home now and re-staff my gardeners! They obviously know too little about flowers! I must have you recommend to me someone who is as wonderful as you!" The woman smiled and patted Ginny on the back before going inside to join Narcissa for tea. Claire had shadowed Ginny for the past month every time she went out to the gardens.

Ginny would pour soil over the roots and receive a hum in agreement, or she would do something entirely out of the ordinary and Claire would coo in curiosity. They would follow up each time with Ginny explaining ever move she had made and Claire would have a quill dictating ver batim everything Ginny had said.

Shaking her head with laughter, Ginny pushed herself off of her knees and stood, marveling at the manner in which her garden had flourished. It had started as a small plot beside the shed and now she had an entire section of the garden to herself. She had taken pictures to her mother when she'd visited, who of course couldn't stop talking about how proud she was of her little Ginny.

With a sigh Ginny made her way back inside to get ready for dinner. She'd had to keep herself occupied that day since Laurent was away with Lucius for some sort of business. Claire had tried explaining it but it all boiled down to Gringotts, accounts, and international commerce with different Ministries. With Lucius' ties in the Ministry he was an important contact and it made as much sense for Laurent to be seen with Lucius as it did to have toast for breakfast.

With a strong rumbling, Ginny's stomach reminded her just how hungry she was and just how long it had been since lunch. Laurent would be back for dinner (sadly, so would Lucius) and although she was starving, Ginny had slowly come to care about how Laurent viewed her.

She'd confessed this to Narcissa who smiled sadly but agreed. "You can't carry your heart around for one man, Ginevra, you must – for lack of a better phrase – shop around." Narcissa had said.

Ginny still felt guilty about being attracted to Laurent but had to remind herself, Lucius or no, she was under the impression that Draco had moved on and should he come home and prove her wrong… well… those were thoughts for a different day. She couldn't fool herself into hoping that Draco would come home and tell her it was all a farce. She couldn't fool herself into thinking that he'd walk through the door and everything would be all right again.

No, she had to pick up the pieces she had and march on.

After showering, she changed into her now favorite dress, a blue strapless number that was tight beneath her bust and fell straight to her knees. What she liked so much about it was that the blue was an iridescent shimmering blue that could almost be silver and it looked marvelous with her hair.

Clasping a silver chain around her neck and sliding a silver bangle over her wrist, she made her way to the dining room.

She had a time with her hair, wanting to leave it down but conceding to what was among the very few of her bad hair days, she simply tied it off to the side and let it hang over her shoulder. As she approached the door she heard the familiar dull rumble of Laurent's voice and couldn't help the butterflies fluttering in her stomach. She supposed if she wasn't entirely too used to a British accent she could say she fell for accents, but as it was Laurent's was the only accent she wasn't accustomed to.

Pushing open the door she saw Laurent and Lucius speaking together only a few paces from the door and Narcissa and Claire entertaining each other with a story that made Claire chuckled and Narcissa blush slightly. Turning her head slightly, to nonchalantly check the time, _oh thank Merlin I'm not late, everyone's just here early_, she turned to Lucius and Laurent. Lucius greeted her like he always did, with a bow of his head and a "good evening Ginevra." Ginny still struggled with this.

She wasn't entirely sure when it had started but sometime after Blaise had practically attacked her outside of the Valentine's dance Lucius had stopped treating her like she was a stranger in his house and instead like she was a guest. Although she was feeling slightly better about not having a target painted on her back, she was still concerned after hearing what Severus had told her. If Lucius had somehow gotten used to her, did that mean he had a plan for her?

Laurent distracted her with one of his patented smiles and she nodded in return, saying good evening to them both before joining Narcissa and Claire. After a few minutes of mingling, which Narcissa said were absolutely necessary, they all sat down and had dinner. Laurent and Lucius did their best to fill in what gaps Claire had about their business going-ons that day but even Ginny couldn't keep up.

Narcissa explained that the Parkinsons were expected the following week and that Claire had requested Ginny's help in designing the gardens at her French home. Ginny, unaware of his, turned to Claire with wide, excited eyes.

"Really?"

Claire smiled and nodded her head slightly. "I find I need someone of expertise and what is the best master but experience? I do not need another person to tell me what two colors would look good together I need to know that they can grow together, no?"

Ginny and Claire immediately dove into a botany centered conversation before Laurent held up his hands in earnest. "Please, I love this talk of beautiful flowers but I think the next bite I take may taste of dirt you are talking so much of it!" The table erupted into a small fit of giggles, Lucius tried to smile, and the conversation turned more towards scheduling events and the summer ball that would be coming up in two months.

Ginny's head grew heavy as she realized that it was, in fact, the first of April which meant that there were only two months left until both the ball and Draco's return. Cheeks heating up, her heart raced. How could she possibly have forgotten? Had it really been a whole month since she'd gone home to see her parents?

"Ginevra?"

Ginny's head snapped up from her pork chops at the mention of her name. Everyone at the table was focused on her. Quickly fumbling for something to save her from certain reprimand she smiled and blushed. "I'm sorry I was thinking of what would happen if snapping hedges were put next to dragon's breath."

Laurent laughed and patted her hand. "Oh, Ginevra, always thinking of the flowers."

Claire chuckled but Narcissa's eyes said she knew what was on Ginny's mind. Claire repeated her question and Ginny did her best to answer it, whether or not it would be best to match soils throughout or change them depending on the plants in the plots.

Dinner ended and they all parted ways, Ginny quick to the door to relieve herself of her thoughts in the shower. How could she have been so careless? Was Draco going to start flooding her thoughts once more? She was halfway down the hallway when a voice called after her.

"Ginevra!"

Ginny turned as Laurent left the dining room behind her, closing the door and walking up beside her. "Are you all right?"

Ginny smiled and slowed her pace. "Yes, I'm fine. I just hadn't realized how long I spent outside today and I'm a little tired. I love the sun but it isn't always healthy I suppose." She blushed and tried to find a reason to get rid of Laurent. She felt so wrong being so close to him.

"You do look red." He agreed, touching his rough thumb to her cheek. Her heart beat loudly in her chest and she was sure he could hear it. Blinking, she nodded and couldn't find anything to say so opted for silence. "I hope you feel better. I was hoping you could show me your nocturnal flowers tonight."

_What a fool! You forgot all about that! Think, stupid girl, think of something to tell him!_

_Oh but I don't want to offend him, I really did want to show him those flowers._

_It doesn't matter! You should feel terrible for forgetting Draco and shouldn't be spending even more time working on forgetting him!_

_What is this, penance?_

"I'll have to see how I feel after I take a shower. I'm sure I'll be able to but I don't want to make a promise I can't keep." She explained, feeling that she had spoken honestly enough.

Laurent nodded and stopped as they reached her door. "Thank you for walking me." She nodded to her door and went for the doorknob.

"Ginevra," Laurent began and Ginny froze.

She could feel it coming, like a wave about to break on the shore.

"Yes?"

And there it was. That look in his eyes that Ginny couldn't find an explanation for. It was there, swimming like sharks in the ocean as his hand took her cheek that was too red for its own good, as he focused too intently on her parted lips, as he kissed her and she didn't stop him but didn't kiss back.

It only took her a few seconds before she snapped back to reality and cursed herself both for not stopping the kiss and not reacting at all. "I've got to go." She blurted out before moving at the speed of light through her door and shutting it swiftly behind her, locking it. She sprinted for her shower and turned the water on as cold as possible before stripping and diving in.

After sobering up she turned the temperature to warm and waited until her shivers subsided before she started thinking.

He'd kissed her. He'd kissed her like Draco had kissed her but it was more. She couldn't figure out if it was in a good way but it was like an unfinished sentence, something with a "dot dot dot" at the end that made you wonder what was on the other side.

Swallowing harshly she began to clean herself, running through every possible way that she could have responded to that kiss besides standing their like a manikin.

_Was it wrong? _

_No, it wasn't wrong. He initiated it, not me. I just… well… I just really, really wanted to kiss back._

_But I didn't._

_Because of Draco._

_Because of the Draco who wrote to me and told me he didn't love me anymore and couldn't continue on in the farce of a relationship we had. _

_Is that why I didn't kiss Laurent back? Because of someone I could love but who doesn't love me back? That's not a good enough reason! Stupid, stupid girl!_

_But what about Lucius? What about the way that he controls __**everything**__? What about the way he controls Draco and how he could be behind it all? I don't know quite how he would've managed to mess up my life like that but I wouldn't dare put it past him, I'm smarter than that._

_So why did I want to kiss Laurent so much? _

_Is Lucius behind what happened with Draco and I?_

_Foolish, stupid, idiotic girl! _

She tossed her washcloth across the shower. Sighing she crouched down, bum on her heels and arms around her knees. Her red hair draped around her like a curtain as she waited for her answer. What should she do? How should she act? Laurent was clearly ready to see what kind of feelings they had for each other and all history with Draco aside, she was ready to do that with Laurent.

But was Laurent worth forgoing trying to get Draco back?

Well, that was void anyways. She wasn't going to try and get Draco back in the first place. He was going to show up at the Manor and either it had all been a mix up in which case she'd have to deal with being a terribly mean person and letting Laurent know they were over… or Draco would show up and the letter would have been legitimate and she and Laurent could continue on with whatever they were at that point.

"_For lack of a better phrase – shop around."_

Yes. She should. And she would.

Standing, she turned off the water and threw her hair into a towel. She quickly dried herself off, her cheeks burning and her stomach in knots. Was she really going to do what she had in her mind to do?

She grabbed up her nightclothes, a pair of short shorts and a tank top, and used a fast drying spell on her hair. Grabbing her door knob she turned it and made her way as quickly as she could down the hallway without alerting any of the other guests of her outing. She stopped outside Laurent's door and paused, collecting her nerves. Raising her fist she left one sound knock on the door, "Laurent?"

Seconds ticked by which felt like hours and she turned down the hallway. All right then, she'd try some other time. Or maybe this was fate telling her it wasn't meant to be.

_Oh bollocks on fate._

"Ginevra?"

Turning she looked up into the deep eyes of Laurent and for a moment all they did was look at each other. Taking a deep breath she stood up on her tiptoes, wrapped her arms around his neck and with a fleeting thought at to how familiar this felt, pressed her lips to his.

This kiss was nothing like the other kiss for Laurent did not stand their stupidly like she had, but instead wrapped his arms around her waist. She couldn't help but note how muscular they were, how shirtless he was, how wonderful he looked with his hair tousled just so and how beautifully their bodies fit together. It was a long while before they parted and Laurent was able to remove his hand from her rear and she was able to untangle her fingers from his hair.

She was pleased to see that he looked about as blushed as she must have been. The grandfather clock that kept everyone abreast of what time it was sounded that eleven o'clock at night had come. Laurent smile and pressed a gentler kissed to Ginny's swollen lips. "Let me get a shirt and I'll walk you to your room." Ginny nodded and waited in the hall for someone who, she could tell, would help her get over this mess she had with Draco.

And he was a damn good kisser too.


	21. Ch20: Return

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Remember that this fic is NOT compliant with the books past HBP. This means that those who died according to DH are still living per my wishes. Also, some characters were beaten into the holes I wished to fit them in, this means they may not be the characters you remember and may not act how they would have in accordance to the HP books.

In other news, this chapter has an extreme importance to the entire story because I am providing POV's of other characters outside of Ginny and the infrequent Draco check-in. It is vitally important to your understanding of the plot to read what I have written in these different POV's. Also, I have used material from HP book 6 in Narcissa's scene, please keep in mind that if there are any likenesses, it is because I am directly quoting the book. Because it would take too long to cite every single sentence I used, please feel more than free to pull out your copy of HBP and flip to Chapter 2 when reading the italicized memories.

Many of you love Laurent, which is good because it keeps you from hunting me down for putting someone in Draco's stead. But alas, not all good things last. This IS a Draco/Ginny fic. For any of you out there willing to take the challenge, if you ask I'll let you borrow Laurent if you want to write your own fic about him .

**Author's Note: ** I'd better get some massive lovin' reviews for this chapter.

_Chapter Twenty: Return_

Ginny was dazing during lessons again. She was inexplicably joyous and her thoughts couldn't sit still. After the nearly midnight rendezvous she had had with Laurent, they had decided it best to keep things slow, simple and on the lesser physical side: snogging mostly, not much more. They still spent nearly every waking moment together when Ginny wasn't in lessons and Laurent wasn't with Lucius. Things had fallen into a nice routine before they had begun their fledgling relationship and they did little to alter it.

Ginny had found herself entirely too happy with Laurent, but also entirely too uncaring to do anything about it. They went around, discussing intimate details of each other's lives, professing their love for things like colors and books and artists.

Ginny came to realize just how attached she had gotten to Laurent when they had lunch with the Parkinsons. Pansy's mother nearly had a heart attack upon seeing Laurent and stayed red and thin-lipped through the whole meal. Apparently she hadn't figured Ginny could become involved with someone like him. Well, Ginny had thought, he did come off as someone more of Pansy's style. But Ginny was the one who won his heart and affections which made her heart swell with pride. But the thought of someone supposing that Laurent belonged with someone else still made her body tingle with jealousy.

She had plenty of time to gloat in her newfound relationship though, when for a month she was in France with Claire and Laurent. She had left only two weeks after her invitation and spent thirty glorious days with her hands covered in dirt and her lips covered by Laurent's. It was all extremely romantic for her. She had arrived with flourish, Claire's house elves running rampant to ensure she had everything she needed. Laurent spared no time in showing her absolutely every nook and cranny in the place, and displayed just how well two bodies could remain hidden from passing house elves or other workers.

At nights he would take her by the hand and walk her around the grounds. They were by no means as floral as the Malfoy's but they were still beautiful. There were fields of trimmed grass criss-crossed with walkways, a maze (which they 'accidentally' got lost in for almost an hour), and a wall of trimmed hedges around the outside. Laurent had the good grace to take her horseback riding and offer to stop once Ginny nearly fell off for the eighth time, and they had had a picnic.

It was her last night there that stood out so amazingly in her mind. The French skyline had been streaked with lavenders and pinks from the sunset and there had been a cool breeze against her back. She and Laurent stood up on one of the many balconies looking over the estate, elbows poised on the banister and chest pressed against her forearms. She slowly felt Laurent's lips against her ear, leaving butterfly light kisses there.

It was momentarily disturbing to her how warm her face got and how much she wanted to swoon like the common socialite, but instead she turned to him and their lips met for a moment. He pulled away, eyes dazzling her as the shadow from inside the house and the light from the setting sun met across his face causing him to glow. He had told her that it was ridiculous for him to assume so, but he had hoped she felt the same way about him as he did about her.

Nervousness hit her then, she wasn't ready for another "I love you" incident and didn't want to be rushed into it in the middle of a French countryside she couldn't runaway in. Carefully she had asked what he meant and he simply smiled, draped his arm around her waist, and kissed her forehead. "That I hope you get these butterflies in your stomach when I touch you, because I know it seems like I'm falling through the air when you touch me." He had said.

Accepting that declaration of at least attraction, she nodded and they divulged in other activities that required little talking. "Ginevra Weasley."

Ginny's head snapped back to where Narcissa had one pristine eyebrow raised, her forefinger and thumb gripping the corner of her glasses so they rested on the very tip of her nose. Ginny almost felt the blood rushing to her face like it was made out of pudding. "I-I'm sorry." She muttered, before bending her head back down to the book in her lap. She couldn't be sure, and she wouldn't dare risk getting caught not studying again, but she swore she heard Narcissa chuckle.

---------------

The wood in the fireplace cracked and hissed as the flames ate it, burned it away, and turned it into smoke which floated into nonexistence. Sitting in a large wingback chair Lucius Malfoy tapped one slender finger lazily against his glass of firewhiskey. His throat burned, not necessarily from the heated liquid, but from the new urge to swiftly bring things together. They seemed to have fallen into place by themselves, which pleased him immensely, in fact they required little help on his part at all.

His silver eyes flicked back to the fireplace where just moments before he'd had an in-depth conversation with the current Minister of Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour. Yes, plans were falling into place beautifully for him. One might think that dabbling in the Dark Lord's business to suit your own needs was risky, but Lucius found it pragmatic. Voldemort would certainly understand that keeping the Malfoy house under careful control and the company they kept cleverly misguided as to the truth behind the closed doors was ultimately in his best interest. If Lucius Malfoy, one of his own most prominent and most trusted followers was in the news every other day for this or that it would be distracting to the cause.

And the cause ruled all. Lucius knew this and had made sacrifices based on it. There had many times where his own life or that of his family could have been quickly snuffed out for the cause, but it hadn't wound up that way. The Dark Lord would protect him and his family, would protect his land and his legend and for that he was in debt to Voldemort above anyone else.

However, and it was only prudent, that Lucius didn't trust him at all. He knew from experience that the Dark Lord would just as easily kill one of his own men as the aurors would. And for this Lucius made sure that where the Dark Lord walked, he walked closely behind, leaving his own trail in the wake of his master. Should the Dark Lord turn on him, there would be plans in place that could potentially save even the life of his beloved wife and son. And of course, Lucius would be saved most of all.

Sipping his whiskey, he let the burning consume him as it often did, his body relaxing beneath the gentle touch of intoxication. His carefully spun web had been snagged almost a year ago when his foolish wife had brought that Weasley girl into their home. Lucius was only grateful he had been away at the time or two almost unidentifiable bodies would have been found on Malfoy Manor and Narcissa and Ginevra nowhere to be found.

A smile painfully tried to draw itself upon his features but he was not used to this and it contorted his face into a maniacal smirk. How clever his Narcissa was, though. Once he'd returned home he'd had a long talk with her, filling himself first with her body, then punishing her well for taking on this charge without his consent. He'd later found, though, that she thought far more ahead than he which had caused him to give her another punishment. It was more directed towards his lack of foresight but she was a willing victim for him.

He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before. The Weasley's were practically extinct from what both the Death Eaters and Dumbledore's pathetic Order reported, and this Ginevra was the last of her pureblooded family. He cursed his blindness for weeks on end after his wife pointed out that generations without a witch in a family could cause a build up of magical energy, and what power could this Ginevra Weasley wield should she be carefully educated in the ways of the Dark Lord's followers?

She had slowly become an essential piece to the mission, the cause. With her in the ranks of the Death Eaters (and Lucius was sure with due time she could easily rise to rival the positions of McNair and Rookwood) there would be a surge of magic and power that the Dark Lord could have at his disposal.

But the way things had been going about were far too slow for Lucius. He'd had to push things along, gathering up his fellow Death Eaters at dinner partings and balls to influence her and measure her. Ginevra had of course gotten rave reviews in the ranks, each Death Eater who'd met her demanding that she be turned as swiftly as possible. And once the Dark Lord had heard of this news, Lucius had been called to his side and charged with that exact task.

Moreover, he'd been praised for having the intelligence to bring her in, to start the process that would have her on bended knee before the Dark Lord. And this was the most precious gift of all for Lucius. Bellatrix Lestrange, his wife's deranged sister had long since been the Dark Lord's right hand. Many thought his lover, for sure. And Lucius had hated that such a viper of a woman could possibly have surpassed him in the eyes of his own master.

Next, surprisingly enough, had been Severus. This, Lucius did not mind quite so much until the Dark Lord had sent him deep in the Order encampment. He'd been there for quite some time now and Lucius had begun to grow suspicious of where his loyalties truly were.

Lucius had remained third in command, per se, in the eyes of the Dark Lord. And now, bringing in Ginevra Weasley and making her part of his plan, and succeeding, was the key to moving up. The importance of winning her for the Dark Lord was so great, in fact, that he had rearranged plans he'd set in place in his own home in order to accommodate her. What he was keen on the most, though, was that they had all fallen into place like feathers on the ground. There was no strenuous work on his part and it seemed he may do very little at all to gain her confidence.

It'd been pure coincidence, for instance, that he had been the one to happen upon that idiot Zabini boy molesting her in the hallway. Before he wouldn't have thought twice about it and continued on his way, but this was the perfect chance to show her that he could be trusted. Well, that she should think she trusted him.

Downing the last of the whiskey, he poured himself another glass. Oh how beautiful life was when everything was so tightly woven and in place…

------------

Ginny stepped into the hall from her bedroom, smoothing out the creases in her dress. She'd been invited to go to the Ministry with Lucius and Laurent to meet someone who Lucius found of great importance. Ginny shivered at the thought, but wasn't able to turn it down. Narcissa had pulled her aside later, running over all she should know for her trip. Not just manners and etiquette, but the quickest exits in the Ministry depending on where she was.

It was then that Ginny had realized that she would be in the hands of Lucius Malfoy that day, and would have to trust him not to kill her or turn her over to the Death Eaters.

Lucius had requested she dress appropriately for the event, and that was something Ginny had no idea how to do. What was appropriate to meet whoever it was she was supposed to? And how could she tell what was appropriate in the eyes of Lucius Malfoy of all people? She'd run through her wardrobe for an hour after her morning lessons with Narcissa and settled on a navy jumper and black slacks. It was odd to her now, to wear slacks, but the thought of being anywhere in public with Lucius in a dress made her nauseous.

She met Laurent at the bottom of the staircase in the foyer and they kept their voices low while waiting for Lucius. He emerged from upstairs only a few minutes later and they left. Ginny had expected them to floo, but instead they apparated, Ginny side-along apparating with Laurent. With a noisy pop and the familiar pull at her stomach, Ginny felt the floor of the Ministry building beneath her feet and heard the swell of voices that accompanied the atrium. Opening her eyes, however, she saw that they were in a balcony overlooking the atrium, someplace she never knew to exist.

"Lucius!" She heard a rough voice call from behind them. Laurent's arms were still firmly wrapped around her waist and she panicked momentarily that they would be reprimanded for the rather public display of affection. Laurent swiftly released her though, and they both turned to find a large red-haired man approaching them from a desk. "Laurent, my boy!" He added, seeing Laurent and taking his hand after shaking Lucius'.

The man, Ginny realized, was Rufus Scrimgeour, the current Minister of Magic. Just as she thought his name he set his eyes on her, she could tell they were judging and measuring her. "Welcome, Miss Weasley, come in, come in." He said, his tone of voice much more in control than it had previously been. They followed him into the more private office and he shut the doors to the balcony behind them. Removing her robe, she sat with Lucius and Laurent in the chairs provided across from him at the desk.

"I was pleased that you had the time to meet us, Rufus." Lucius nodded his head formally.

Scrimgeour took his seat opposite a large wooden desk that Ginny thought must've weighed a hundred pounds, and folded his hands on the desktop. "Of course, of course. I'm always glad to make time with today's youth." He turned his eyes back to Ginny and, had she been a cat for instance, she would've puffed up twice her normal size and sunk back into her haunches.

Smiling weakly, she let Lucius do the talking. "Indeed. As you know Miss Weasley has only come to live with us since just recently but I feel she's an asset to the wizarding community."

Ginny wasn't aware Lucius thought such things, but she wasn't going to disagree with him about anything at this point. At that point Scrimgeour turned his eyes once more to Ginny and she had that undeniable feeling that he was somehow calculating her measurements, how tall she was, who she was, what she could do magically etc. And as if she needed proof he parted his lips and said, "So Ginevra, you're the daughter of the late Arthur and Molly Weasley, correct?"

Ginny nodded.

"And you were the only girl in how many generations?"

Ginny was a bit frightened by where this line of questioning might be going but answered all the same. "Several, we're not entirely sure but it's somewhere around thirteen."

Srimgeour grinned, crossing and interlocking his fingers and leaning back in his chair. "You know, Ginevra, magic passes from family member to family member. The stronger the ancestors, the stronger the children." Ginny nodded in understanding. "However, it also requires balance. This is why many wizarding families will find that if added up the amount of male and female children are usually extraordinarily close. Do you understand?" She nodded again. "Very good." His smile widened.

Ginny felt her body beginning to grow cold under his gaze and wondered if it was just the room or her instincts kicking in. She always had an odd manner of telling when things were taking a turn for the possibly harmful, and this seemed to be one of those times. She was trapped though. Behind her was a long fall to the atrium of the Ministry and Lucius was sitting not three feet from her. She couldn't bare to think of the punishment she may incite if she didn't do what he expected of her, especially in front of the Minister.

"You see, you are a very unique individual." Scrimgeour continued, drawing Ginny's attention back to the way his eyes seemed like they were trying to drill into her soul. "It is uncommon that a family doesn't balance out the magic between genders, so in such cases as these when all of a sudden a family, for instance, has a girl…" He trailed off shrugging lightly, a bushy eyebrow rising up. "Well, let's just say you've been destined for some fairly spectacular things. Be happy Lucius was willing to take you in. It's the best place you could have hoped for."

Ginny, Lucius, and Laurent apparated out of the office an hour later. The conversation never had returned to her, instead it was focused on Lucius' business endeavors overseas at which point Ginny tuned out. She however, never could shake the feeling that they were gauging her, measuring her even in her silence. When they went to the balcony to leave Ginny looked back and saw Scrimgeour's eyes on her once more as she felt the familiar tug in her gut. The feeling of unrest would stay with her the rest of the day.

------------

Narcissa ran her thin fingers through her hair as she sat slouched over her desktop. She was exhausted with worry. The idea of Ginny and Rufus Scrimgeour being in the same room together was making her stomach squirm and she was fearfully cold, although this could also be a side effect of being so connected with Ginny. She could only thank the heavens though that she felt no harm had come to her charge. No, she was not just her charge anymore. In truth it was as if Narcissa had adopted Ginny Weasley in reality, not just for show.

She had been surprised when Minerva had asked to see her all those months ago. She had sent an owl ahead of time and Narcissa had met her in a small tavern somewhere just inside a small Muggle town. They had exchanged information in hushed voices, always aware of the risk of the two being in public together, but in truth there was no place safer. Not to say public was safe, but the likelihood of a Death Eater wandering into a Muggle bar and recognizing them was low.

Minerva had brought up Ginny casually, as if it would have been no large feat at all for Narcissa to find a way for this girl to be welcomed into her home. At first Narcissa blatantly refused. She was in no position to deal with both Lucius and Draco when it came to this girl, and she wouldn't take the risk of being caught letting a self-proclaimed Harry Potter supporter under her roof in times like these.

"Remember, Narcissa. Remember what we did for you though." Minerva had said.

And now, bent over her desk near tears at the thought of her only son being tortured into a Death Eater and her newly found surrogate child trapped in a room with someone who was more dangerous than anyone would first guess, she remembered clearly.

…

_Narcissa hurried up a street named Spinner's End, over which the towering mill chimney seemed to hover like a giant admonitory finger. Her footsteps echoed on the cobbles as she passed boarded and broken windows, until she reached the very last house, where a dim light glimmered through the curtains in a downstairs room. She knocked on the door and wrapped her arms around herself, protecting her thin form from the biting wind._

_After a few seconds, she heard movement behind the door and it opened a crack. A sliver of a man could be seen looking out at her, a man with long black hair parted in curtains around a sallow face and black eyes. Narcissa threw back her hood. She was so pale that she seemed to shine in the darkness; the long blonde hair streaming down her back gave her the look of a drowned person. _

"_Narcissa!" said the man, opening the door a little wider so the light fell upon her. "What a pleasant surprise!"_

"_Severus," she said in a strained whisper. "May I speak to you? It's urgent."_

"_But of course." He stood back to allow her to pass him into the house. She followed him into a tiny sitting room which had the feeling of a dark, padded cell. The walls were completely covered in books, most of them bound in old black or brown leather; a threadbare sofa, an old armchair, and a rickety table stood grouped together in a pool of dim light cast by a candle-filled lamp hung from the ceiling. The place had an air of neglect, as though it was not usually inhabited._

_Snape gestured Narcissa to the sofa. She threw off her cloak, cast it aside, and sat down, staring at her white and trembling hands clasped in her lap. "So what can I do for you?" Snape asked, settling himself in the armchair across from her. _

"_We… we are alone, aren't we?" Narcissa asked quietly._

"_Yes, of course. Well, Wormtail's here, but we're not counting vermin, are we?" He pointed his wand at the wall of books behind him and with a bang, a hidden door flew open, revealing a narrow staircase upon which a small man stood frozen. "As you have clearly realized, Wormtail, we have guests," said Snape lazily. _

_The man crept, hunchbacked, down the last few steps and moved into the room. He had small, watery eyes, a pointed nose, and wore an unpleasant simper. His left hand was caressing his right which looked as thought it was encased in a bright silver glove. "Narcissa!" He said in a squeaky voice. "How charming-"_

"_If you don't mind, Wormtail, Narcissa and I have some important business to attend to. You may turn in for the night if you wish." There was no question in Snape's comment as he twirled his wand casually in his fingers. Wormtail hesitated for a moment, looking as though he might argue, but then turned and headed through the same hidden door._

"_Severus, I'm sorry to come here like this, but I had to see you. I think you are the only one who can help me-" _

_Snape held up a hand to stop her, then pointed his wand again at the concealed staircase door. There was a loud bang and squeal, followed by the sound of Wormtail scurrying back up the stairs "My apologies," said Snape. "He has lately taken to listening at doors, I don't know what he means by it… You were saying Narcissa?"_

_She took a great shuddering breath and started again. "Severus I know I ought not to be here, I have been told to say nothing to anyone but I think you are the only who can help me. I have nowhere else to turn. Lucius is in jail and…" She closed her eyes and two large tears seeped from beneath her eyelids. "The Dark Lord has forbidden me to speak of it," Narcissa continued, her eyes still closed. "He wishes none to know of the plan."_

_Snape cleared his throat and Narcissa's eyes opened, watching him cautiously. "It so happens that I know of the plan," he said in a low voice. "I am one of the few the Dark Lord has told. Nevertheless, had I not been in on the secret, Narcissa, you would have been guilty of great treachery to the Dark Lord. You must be more careful." His voice conveyed none of the menace and anger it should have as he frowned deeply at her._

"_I thought you must know about it." Her eyes sank to the floor. "I know of your involvement, of your alliances. I… I can't say I share the same luxury Severus, but I dearly wished to tell you and hoped you could help me."_

_Severus nodded slowly. "What help do you require, Narcissa? If you are imagining I can persuade the Dark Lord to change his mind, I am afraid there is no hope, none at all."_

"_Severus," she whispered, tears sliding down her pale cheeks. "My son… my only son…" She pressed the palm of her shaking hand to her forehead. "Bella tells me to be proud." She ground out bitterly. "Oh, but I cannot. Even when Draco flaunts his duty like it's a prize in front of his father's friends it's because he is sixteen and has no idea what lies in store! Why Severus? Why my son? It is too dangerous! This is vengeance for Lucius' mistake I know it!"_

_Snape said nothing. He looked away from the sight of her tears as though they were indecent, but he could not pretend not to hear her. His stoic expression began to fall as Narcissa gasped for air across from him. He and Narcissa had been good friends in school, outside of Lilly Potter she had been one of the only people to bother carrying on a conversation with him. It pained him to see her like this._

"_That's why he's chosen Draco. To punish Lucius. And if he succeeds he'll be honored above all the others but he won't! How can he when even the Dark Lord himself…" She trailed off, fighting for air to reach her lungs. _

"_Severus… please… You are, you have always been, Draco's favorite teacher, you're my old friend, I beg of you…" She crumpled, falling at his feet, sobbing and moaning on the floor. "My only son… my only son…"_

_Snape knew Narcissa, knew her breeding and her pride and her dignity and for it watching her grovel was like watching an angel forced to humiliate itself for the sake of the greater good. His heart wrenched in his chest. "Narcissa that's enough."_

_She quieted a little._

"_It might be possible… for me to help Draco."_

_She sat up, her face paper-white, her eyes huge. "Severus- oh Severus- you would help him? Would you look after him, see he comes to no harm?"_

"_I can try."_

"_If you are there to protect him… Severus, will you swear it? Will you make the Unbreakable Vow?"_

_Snape's expression was blank, unreadable. "Narcissa, you must listen to me."_

And then the plan was hatched. Of course, Narcissa later found out that it was unnecessary to even cast the Unbreakable Vow. Snape had already been chosen by Dumbledore himself to complete the task, but on that night Narcissa had pledged her allegiance to the Order of the Phoenix, gladly revoked her place under the burden of keeping up with the Death Eaters. She had always been so sickly as a child and so ill after she and Lucius wed that Voldemort had never deemed fit to fashion her with a Dark Mark.

It was ironic that what was killing her inevitably saved her life that night for the oath she made would have made its way to Voldemort's ears no longer than light travels that night and the game would have been up. And so, Snape killed Dumbledore, Draco was spared using an Unforgivable, and Narcissa was left with a debt to pay. Ginny Weasley's safety had become the price.

-----------

It had been nearly a week since Ginny's visit to the Ministry with Lucius and Laurent, six days to be exact. She remembered this with remarkable clarity as she adjusted her earrings, for that day was June first and that night was the Summer Ball. This meant a number of things to Ginny, one was the two month anniversary of Ginny and Laurent's rather functional and happy relationship. The other was that Draco would be returning home that night.

She had mixed emotions about seeing him. She wanted to talk to him, make sure the air was clear between them so he may go on and be with whomever it was he was with, and that she and Laurent could proceed in the way they had been going. She didn't know what to expect out of Draco, she wasn't entirely sure whether he would insist she go through a waiting period after the breakup in order to mourn the loss of his presence in her life, or whether he would be less petty and let her just move on.

She smoothed her hands over the dark emerald gown that hung on her curves. The fabric shined and swished as she walked down the candlelit hallway to the staircase. Narcissa had insisted upon Ginny enjoying the evening and relieved her of hostess-ing duties for the night. Ginny was glad of this, she'd rather not have to shake hands with Draco and his new girlfriend if she could avoid it. At least until it was on her own terms.

She made her way down the staircase in the foyer and found Narcissa in the study. "Are you sure you won't be needing me at the door tonight?" She asked. Narcissa looked up from some papers she had been turning through and smiled.

"I'll be fine, just enjoy yourself tonight." She nodded Ginny's dismissal and Ginny turned to the foyer and continued to the ballroom. There was a slight intake of breath as she saw the ballroom for the first time that night fully decorated. Inside the ceiling had been striped with fairy lights and the doors to the garden were open. Smiling to herself she walked across the empty room, her footsteps echoing behind her, and stepped out into the fresh night air.

Across the garden fairy lights had been adorned on selected flowers and bushes, guiding whoever would like to take a tour of Ginny's hard work. She bent down, fingers trailing over the petals of a gorgeous bloom.

"It's nowhere near as beautiful as you look tonight, Ginevra." She heard Laurent's voice from behind her. Standing, she turned, a smile on her face. He was leaning against the trunk of a tree, suit open and robe on a bench nearby.

"You don't look too bad yourself." She said quietly. Stepping towards each other they met halfway and enjoyed a kiss. Parting, he wrapped his arm smoothly around her waist and picked up his robe.

"The room is starting to fill, should we make our entrance?"

Ginny nodded and they walked back to the ballroom with barely an inch between them. He stepped away from her, offering his hand at the step up into the room and followed behind her. As she took an offered glass of champagne she turned to watch the guests enter. Laurent touched her back lightly, telling her he needed to speak with someone a moment. Nodding she received a kiss on her cheek.

She smiled and sipped at her champagne. When she turned back to the entrance of the room she was met by a silver colored gaze which left her stomach in her feet and her heart somewhere below her ribcage. There stood Draco with his sleeves rolled up sporting a Dark Mark and Pansy Parkinson on his arm.


	22. Ch21: Future Endeavors

Title: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** So Draco's back but I warn you… they will not be making it like rabbits anytime soon… Or at least not in this chapter. Remember D/G! All will be smutty and romantic and wonderful in the end… have faith!

**Author's Note: ** Some of you have very good instincts…

And bless all of you who offered to beta… you should all be showered with flowers and goodies and Draco-dolls!

_Chapter Twenty-One: Future Endeavors _

Ginny's hand stalled in bringing her champagne glass from her lips. In the matter of seconds she and Draco were sharing eye contact her face grew warm, her fingers began to tremble, her breathing quickened and her heart began to race. She had thought she would have been prepared to see him but she honestly wasn't. Now that he was across the massive room with people crossing in front of them, all she wanted was to put more space between them. She didn't know why she was so afraid to speak to him, but she had this feeling it wouldn't go over well.

Draco's expression had been relatively blank while the seconds ticked by but as Ginny waited she saw a sneer cross his features. "Ginevra?" She turned to find Laurent looking directly at Draco and felt his hand fall to the small of her back protectively. He reached out and took her shaking glass from her and applied slight pressure to her back. "Come, I want you to meet someone." Looking back at Draco, she saw him casting a particularly controlled death glare in Laurent's direction.

Was he jealous, she thought? Was he angry that she moved on so quickly and wanted to get back with her? But those thoughts made her feel terrible, she really did like Laurent and she deserved to be happy. If only things with Draco weren't so complicated. Was he really with Pansy or was she just a guest? He'd always complained about her so much she must be just a guest. And Ginny really shouldn't have been thinking about these thoughts, she decided, because she was with Laurent and she wouldn't leave him just for Draco.

Nodding, swallowing roughly to dispel her cottonmouth, she let Laurent guide her to a group of men and women in a corner. Ginny's eyes drifted back to Draco as she was steered away and saw him follow the two with his eyes. He only looked away when Pansy tugged on his arm and dragged him over to his father. Ginny's eyes turned back to her present company, two couples both in which the husband was a Ministry official in some department to deal with international communications.

She was far too engrossed in the previous long-distance encounter to pay much attention though, and did her best to nod or smile when was appropriate and partake in the conversation by making noncommittal noises like "hmm" and "ahh". After Laurent saw she wasn't quite up to socializing, he excused them and led her away. "Ginevra are you alright?" He asked, hand still on her lower back.

Sighing, Ginny rested the palm of her hand on her stomach, catching her breath. "Yes, Ren, I'm fine really."

"Do you need to sit down?"

Before Ginny could formulate a response, however, a booming voice hushed the crowds. "Ladies and gentlemen," Lucius' voice echoed among the audience. "I thank you for joining us here tonight to celebrate both the summer and my son Draco's return." The audience clapped jovially. Ginny could barely lift her hands as she searched the room for a familiar hair of pale blonde.

Lucius continued by asking everyone to enjoy themselves but Ginny was busy plotting different excuses to end the night early. It was like a tidal wave beating down on her, she really hadn't any idea that seeing Draco would be so awkward for her. Especially with Parkinson of all people! If he was going to leave her for someone at least have it be someone who was in competition with her.

_Now, now Ginny, you're starting to get a bit full of yourself. _She mentally scolded herself.

"Ginevra?" Laurent's voice invaded her train of thought and she turned to him. His face was pulled together in a surprisingly attractive frown as he looked down at her. "Why don't you sit down, yes? I can go get you some water. Maybe that would help?"

Supposing he assumed she was just overheated, she nodded and allowed him to lead her to the garden where she sat down on a bench near the French doors. "I'll be back with some water, you just rest."

Not chancing accidentally letting her voice break or something like it, she nodded again and he disappeared inside the manor. Maybe, she thought, she could remain outside for the duration of the night therein completely avoiding both Draco and Pansy and simply sneak back up to her room at the tail end of the evening. It sounded like a good plan and she was congratulating herself on coming up with something when she heard footsteps behind her.

Of course it would turn out that it was Draco and Pansy, arm in arm, wandering the walkways of the garden. Ginny quickly turned back around on the bench, praying they hadn't seen her and hoping she could play like she didn't even know they were there. All was going well until Pansy let out a painfully high pitched giggle that even the dead could've heard. Panicking, Ginny was about to walk back inside when Laurent appeared before her with two flutes of water in his hands.

"Here you are Ginevra." He said, handing her one.

Parting her lips to suggest they go inside, she was interrupted by the abrupt silence that fell on the couple to her back and the look that crossed Laurent's face. Now this look she hadn't seen before on his features, though it was something she was familiar with from Hogwarts. It was the look of jealousy and a tinge of a grudge. Why it would appear on Laurent's face as he noticed the arrival of Draco and Pansy, Ginny wasn't sure, but her brain slowly began wondering if Laurent and Draco had ever met before.

"Good evening." Laurent said stiffly, nodding to Draco and Pansy. Ginny did her best to remain facing forward, avoiding eye contact with her ex-boyfriend and his new (old) girlfriend. Ginny could almost feel Pansy shifting so that she was halfway on Draco, halfway showing her cleavage off to Laurent.

She wasn't sure, but Ginny could've sworn bile had risen in the back of her throat.

"Pleasure is ours." Pansy cooed in that slippery voice she used when she tried to tease males. Surveying Laurent's face, though, Ginny saw not just the lack of interest, but a slight revulsion play across his face. This, of course, made her feel a bit better about the whole situation. Laurent lowered his lifted eyebrow and turned his attention to Draco who, Ginny suspected, was giving him as blank an expression as he was giving Ginny earlier. The cool Malfoy indifference.

"Yes." Were the only words she heard from him before he and Pansy continued walking past where she and Laurent were. They were almost past where she sat when Pansy tugged on Draco's arm a little more forcefully than was necessary and turned to face Ginny.

Had she not known Draco so intimately, Ginny wouldn't have been able to pick it out, but a slight wave of anger crossed his well controlled features before it settled. So he was angry at her.

"And Ginny Weasley, it's been a long time hasn't it?" Pansy asked, smirk playing on her face.

"Not so long I'd forget all the memories we had from school." Ginny replied coldly, gripping her flute with as much grace as she could, trying not to shatter the glass in her fist. She smiled slightly, attempting to use the same Slytherin social etiquette she had seen from them in school. Make it very clear your meanings, but not through words or actions, she'd had it explained to her by Draco.

Pansy's smirk faltered before she shook her hair out of her face. It had been curled tightly and settled at her jaw, it wasn't a good look for her pinched features. "I do apologize we weren't better friends, class difference you know." Ginny was well aware of what Pansy was doing using the word "class". She meant both age and economics, but Ginny was more than prepared for a stab at her upbringing.

"Yes, but look at me now. Perhaps we could get closer seeing as I'm a Malfoy in Lucius and Narcissa's eyes. Why, Lucius even invited me to join him in meeting with Rufus Scrimgeour just the other day." Using Lucius' first name was a gamble but it seemed to pay off as Pansy lost a bit of the color from her cheeks and Draco clearly was trying to keep from asking more questions. His silver eyes were on her now, daring her delve deeper into details about the venture, but she wouldn't.

Pansy seemed for a moment like she was going to cease fire, but then her face contorted into some sort of demented smile. "I did hear a juicy piece of gossip though, is it true about you and Zabini?"

Ginny's face erupted in heat as she clenched her jaw and set down her water, refusing to be tempted into shattering the flute and using a jagged piece to slit the jugular in Pansy's neck. "I'm not sure what you mean." Ginny responded, eyes trained on Draco for reaction. He was looking at Pansy now. What Pansy would see was slight disinterest, what Ginny saw however was controlled rage. This confused her even more though, why would he be mad about Pansy bringing that up? Because he had saved Ginny and he was embarrassed about it maybe?

"Oh you know," Pansy continued, faltering under the request for detail. "That you two were an item." She finished.

Ginny relaxed a bit. Maybe she hadn't heard the whole story. "Only for a time, we didn't have that much in common." Ginny grabbed up her glass and turned to Laurent, standing. "How about I show you the garden?" She was referring to her portion of it, and would love the chance to get away since where she had planted her flowers was in the very back of the gardens.

Laurent nodded, holding out his arm for Ginny to take. "Of course, mon cher." He added, darting a gaze to Pansy and Draco before turning in the direction of where Ginny's part of the garden was. "Good to meet you." He called back, waving a hand in the air as he and Ginny walked off. Ginny couldn't fight the feeling that if she turned around Draco would be staring her down like his life depended on it.

Thankful that they were about to be out of view and earshot from Draco and Pansy, Ginny exhaled and felt the muscles in her shoulders loosen even though she hadn't felt them tense in the first place. "How awful." She muttered to herself.

"That girl is very rude, no? I could tell she was jealous of you." Laurent smiled down at Ginny as they walked along the cobblestones, their footsteps echoing in the night air. Although she was still in a terrible mood she couldn't help but give him a small smile back for trying to make her feel better. "You know though, she has many reasons to be. She is far from being as lovely as you." He slowed them to a stop and turned Ginny to face him.

Ginny was instantly grateful that Laurent had the charm to make her feel better. Leave it to compliments on her beauty to improve her mood. She'd have to make a note to tell her mother about how she'd lost her urge for humble pie in favor of hearing Laurent's sweet comments. Smiling, she nodded and sighed, wrapping her arms around his waist as he pulled her against him. "She's just an ugly person all around, I'm afraid."

Laurent hummed in agreement and they stood there for a moment, the sounds of the party echoing out across the flowers and trees that swayed in the wind. "Who is this Zabini?" Laurent asked, running his fingertips up and down the middle of her back.

Biting her lower lip in thought, Ginny hesitated to divulge the entire story but figured it wouldn't do any harm. "He was someone I had dated in sorts when I first moved here. He tried to force himself on me and that ended things pretty quickly."

"He didn't!" Laurent jerked away, looking with worry into her eyes. He reached up and pushed a stray tendril behind her ear. "He is not here tonight is he?"

"No. No, he's not." She assured him, resting the palms of her hands on his chest. "I don't think he even got an invite, if I remember correctly." She leaned in, her forehead resting against his shoulder. "It happened a couple of months ago; I'm over it really."

She felt Laurent's arms snake around her back and hold her protectively against him. It was then that a thought occurred to her. "Ren?" She asked, leaning back to look up at him.

He raised his eyebrows in question and waited for her to continue.

"Have you and Draco met before?"

And there it was again, that something behind his eyes that she couldn't quite define. Laurent looked away, pursing his lips in concentration. "I can't say for certain though I'm sure we have to have met before, what with my aunt and his mother so close. It couldn't have been recently if we did. I don't remember. Still, the things I heard of him are not so good."

Ginny frowned without meaning to. "What things?"

Laurent shrugged, running his thumbs against her arms. "Just that he is not too kind to people who are not like him, that he isn't friendly or doesn't always show proper respect." He placed a kiss to her forehead and despite herself she felt her cheeks grow warm. "It is not so much that I think he is a bad person, I just don't think I would keep him as a friend."

Ginny nodded, wanting to change the subject to something less depressing.

"Ginevra?" A voice came from behind her.

She turned to find Claire walking up to where she and Laurent stood. Parting out of habit, Ginny turned to Claire with a smile on her lips. "Claire! How are you?"

Claire smiled and reached out her hands for Ginny's, taking them and pulling her back towards the Manor. "Lovely dear, of course, but Narcissa sent me to find you two. She figured you would be in your garden. It is time for you and Draco to dance, you see."

Ginny halted, but recovered by leaning down as if to adjust her shoe. "Dance?" She asked, unable to form a complete sentence at the thought of being thrown together in such close spaces with Draco so soon.

Claire waited patiently as Ginny fixed the problem that didn't exist. "Yes, yes, you see Lucius thought it would be a good idea for the two of you to have a dance since you two are so close now."

_Leave it to Lucius to ruin my night, _Ginny mentally scowled but attempted to compose herself outwardly. "Why yes, of course." She followed Claire back to the ballroom with Laurent close behind.

Claire let go her hold on Ginny and walked up to Lucius to inform him that they could start the dance. Behind her Ginny felt Laurent rest his hand on her lower back and lean in. "Remember to save a dance for me, mon cher." He whispered and was gone before Claire walked back.

"Come now, Ginevra!" Claire clapped her hands and led Ginny to Lucius' side where Draco was waiting. She hoped they wouldn't make a show of it, but of course she knew better.

Lucius tapped his wand to his wine glass and the room was almost suddenly silenced. "Because they might as well be siblings," Lucius began, "Draco and Ginevra shall share a dance." He announced.

Great, Ginny thought, the entire room would be watching them. The dance floor cleared and all of a sudden she felt the electric presence beside her that alerted her to Draco's close proximity. Turning her head slightly she saw him offer his arm and setting her hand on it, they walked out to the middle of the room.

Ginny felt like someone had filled her with molten lead as she followed Draco, as if all of her movements were heavy and slow. She was growing warmer by the minute, increasingly uncomfortable with having to be so close to him, increasingly uncomfortable for wanting to be. They stopped once they reached the center and as if by choreography, turned to face each other, falling into a well rehearsed dance position.

In the seconds before the music started up, Ginny avoided looking Draco in the eyes, deciding instead to find something interesting just past his left ear. Finally there was a sound of violins and they were moving fluidly around the floor as if they were just practicing in the room alone. Twirling about, turning, dipping, counting each step, Ginny soon lost focus to the people around her and instead she focused on the man in front of her.

Since he had walked in he'd rolled down the sleeve of his shirt which made her feel much better. In a way she felt as if the Dark Mark she saw scarring his skin may have just been a figment of her imagination. He still smelt like he always did, like spices and soap. She remembered going in to lie on his bed just after he had left to smell his cologne on the sheets. Now that same smell haunted her.

His hair was longer and hung around his shoulders, chin, and eyes like curtains of pale blonde. His eyes were still the same color from what she could tell, but she would dare glancing up in fear that she may never look away. Beneath her hands his muscles took up more space beneath his skin than they used to and moved with more precision than she remembered. There was a gentleness that had been lost in the way he held her, though it may have been just the discomfort they both shared in dancing together.

As she let herself be guided about the dance floor, feeling the music slowing to the end of the song, she dared a look at his face. Raising her eyes from his neck to his jaw she saw the strong familiar lines she had blushed about when they first started dating. Moving further up his lips were still the same lips, still slightly pink and thin, though his bottom lip was still plump enough to kiss. His nose was the same angled, jutting feature and his cheeks were still high and fair.

And his eyes were trained on her, as if reading every thought that went through her mind. There was an intensity behind them, a mixture of uncontrolled anger and bitterness, and something she wanted so badly to call sadness. She wanted to look away, wanted to fall out of the spell he was slowly weaving around them, but couldn't. Around her hand, his hand tightened and against her lower back she felt his finger stiffen against her.

They remained that way for a second until the song was over. They slowed, stopped, and parted somewhat slowly. Draco bowed deeply as was custom, and Ginny dipped down, touching her chin to her chest. As they stood there was almost the feeling that words may be exchanged, but Laurent was close behind her and took this time to step up, wrapping his arm around her waist.

"I have to interrupt, I must have the next dance, Ginevra." He said, a little louder than necessary, and Draco was gone before Ginny could even accept the invitation.

She let herself be swept up into another dance and was as well swept away by the night. It was the end of the ball before she knew it and Laurent escorted her back to her room.

She closed the door behind her and felt oddly satisfied at the click it made in the dark silence of her room. Without a thought of the night, not wanting to address anything until the next morning, she shed her dress, throwing it onto a nearby chair, pulled on her night clothes, and promptly fell asleep in her bed without even taking the charms out of her hair.

Ginny first became aware of the drifting of her dream, how it faded like the distance through a mist. As the heat from the morning sun on her back became more and more real, the warmth from the sheets, the way her body seemed as if it were meant to be in this position collided against her brain, she remembered faintly the remnants of her dream. Instead of great fear and apprehension at the ball last night, she had felt joy and excitement at seeing Draco. They had embraced and she had cried and they had kissed.

But as she sighed, knowing full well that reality was her bed and the sun and the day ahead of her, she knew that dream could not be real. No, the night before had been quite the opposite from her dream. More so, she was stricken with a pang of guilt at dreaming about Draco after last night's events having never dreamt about Laurent before.

Swallowing, noticing she was in dire need of brushing her teeth and showering, she slowly pulled the covers away from her with small kicks of her feet. She rose up out of the bed, crossed the warm wooden floor into her bathroom and began again the daily routine she had fit into so well. She never could take up all the time Narcissa had allotted her for getting ready and was allowed to sleep in a bit. This helped Ginny greatly since she also couldn't seem to go to bed before eleven either.

After a shower, brushing her teeth, casting a few makeup charms and hair charms, she left the still slightly steaming bathroom and began pulling clothes from her wardrobe. She knew for sure she wanted to look good for Laurent (and she wanted to look drop dead gorgeous so Pansy, whom Ginny had learned was staying in the Manor for the next few weeks, could have an appropriately sized cow), so instead of her usual casual attire she opted for something slightly more feminine.

Ginny, Narcissa, and Claire had spent some time before her trip to France shopping and Ginny had practically been instructed to buy at least ten new outfits. Claire had suggested a specific number, which Ginny now pulled from her wardrobe and went away adorning herself with the matching accessories.

Twenty minutes before breakfast Ginny stepped out of her bedroom, black knee-high boots clicking and echoing in the hallway. This dress, which Ginny hadn't seen before, was something Claire called a "dropped waist" dress. Ginny assumed it was because the dress seemed to have no waist outside of the thick band around her thighs. Well, she thought, it should have been a waist except there was nothing below it. In fact, the dress was really just a rectangular shaped off-the-shoulders number that was trying it's best to keep her legs together.

At least that's what she thought. She figured, however, that this dress would suit the occasion since it hit dangerously high on her thigh even though it was still appropriate for the company she would be in, and displayed her shoulders beautifully. She shook her arms, loosening her muscles, listening to her bangle bracelets and feeling the smooth cotton fabric of the wide sleeves which stopped at her elbows.

She had to admit she must have been a sight to see that morning. Her dark red hair she had left into large curls loose around her back and shoulders, her dress was a dark but vibrant purple which paired nicely with her slightly fair complexion and hair, and just to make sure she was as modest as possible, before leaving she slipped on a pair of black leggings. Smiling a bit to herself, she checked to make positive her dangling silver earrings were still in her lobes before stepping through the doorway to the dining room.

There was still a small amount of people there for breakfast so the formal dining room was unnecessary. As she closed the door behind her she noticed Laurent was in deep conversation with Narcissa who glanced over at Ginny, lifted an eyebrow approvingly, and continued on with her conversation. Next she saw Draco and Lucius in deep conversation with Pansy lurking nearby with arms crossed, clearly not part of the conversation. Claire was nowhere to be seen but she always turned up right as the clock struck.

Behind her the door opened and closed and Ginny turned to find the last member of their party and smiled. "Claire! Good morning, I hope you slept well."

Claire smiled and touched her chin with a finger. "Marvelous, Ginevra, and you look wonderful in my dress!" She exclaimed in reply, grinning proudly at her idea succeeding.

Claire went over to Narcissa and Ginny, risking exposure to Draco but feeling the need to add insult to the injury she was sure to cause Pansy with her gleaming appearance, headed for Lucius.

Just as she approached them, as if the fates had heard her prayers, Lucius turned his eyes towards her and actually paused mid-sentence. She wouldn't have been sure if she'd made a mistake if it hadn't been for the way his lips turned up slightly as he closed his lips, stood straighter, and nodded his head. "Good morning, Ginevra." He said smoothly.

She saw Draco go a bit rigid beside her and fought to hide her glee as Pansy nearly dropped her jaw on the floor. Ginny was sure the poor girl had been standing there all morning trying to get a word in edgewise and here Ginny walked up and got Lucius to stop his conversation entirely for someone who had previously been nothing but scum in his eyes. Pansy may call it unfair, Ginny called it poetic justice.

Alright, it might not have been terribly ironic but Ginny was basking in this change of tides. "Good morning, Lucius, hope your day has been well so far?" She asked, twisting her tone of voice so it was light and charming. If she was going to put on airs, she may as well do it right.

Lucius raised an eyebrow and his smile widened slightly. "Business as usual, I spoke with Scrimgeour and he has extended an invitation to you as a guest to an important Ministry get-together." Ginny nearly laughed. It was far too comical how things were working out for her this morning.

"That sounds wonderful! You must tell him I accept of course, do you know what this get-together is exactly?" Ginny crossed her arms casually in front of her, on hand holding the opposite elbow as the other hand dangled in air as she'd seen Claire do before. Beside her Pansy was still staring open-mouthed at them.

Lucius nodded. Before he could explain, breakfast was served though and instead he held out his arm to escort her to her seat. She took it, turning her back on both Draco and Pansy, congratulating herself on having not once snuck a peak at Draco. "It's a meeting that includes the heads of certain departments," Lucius continued to explain, guiding her away from her usual spot beside Narcissa instead to the spot to his left.

Glancing at Narcissa, Ginny saw the woman follow this with her eyes but show no other interest in the change of seating arrangement. Instead, Claire sat in Ginny's former place, Laurent in the middle, and Ginny on the other side. Once Lucius sat down it became obvious that Draco would be to his right and Pansy to Draco's. Sadly enough for Pansy, the only person she would have close conversation with would be Draco, no one else acting as if they cared to strum up dialogue with her.

"It also includes influential members of society like the editors of papers, executives of businesses and the like." Lucius went on. "I've been invited as well and will introduce you to the appropriate people."

Ginny couldn't help the shiver that fought to erupt across her body at the thought of the word 'appropriate' and what it could possibly mean to someone like Lucius Malfoy. But, like they say, when in Rome… She would simply have to take the opportunities presented to her. When she had been home her father, no matter how much he hated to say it, had told her that the connections she made while with the Malfoys could only make life after her becoming of age easier. If she ever wanted to work in the wizarding world as it was now, she would need all the help the Malfoys could give her and she was not in a position to refuse friends when they could be given- no matter how questionable in nature.

Breakfast was quiet, bordering on awkward as everyone poked at their food and pushed it around their plates. Even Lucius could be seen inspecting the silent crowd and shifting his arm slightly. It was all the discomfort he showed that morning, but it was enough to let Ginny know that the tension was more than palpable enough to the group. Just as the dishes were being cleared away, Ginny saw Pansy not-so-inconspicuously elbow Draco and clear her throat.

It dawned on Ginny that the girl had seemed rather interested in finding a moment to bring something up, but was always talked over or glared at by Draco. It seemed Pansy was more than adamant enough to have whatever it was she wanted said to be addressed before everyone left. Draco rolled his eyes though, and stood, placing his palms firmly on the table.

"If you don't mind everyone, a word before you go about your days?" He asked, a little bored.

Lucius nodded, sitting back in his chair with mild interest etched on his face. Ginny waited patiently, looking over at Narcissa for any clue of what might be going on but the thin line created by the woman's lips conveyed that she knew just as little as everyone else and wasn't amused by it.

"Pansy and I have known each other for quite some time and have come to realize we feel strongly for each other." At this Pansy made some sort of high pitched squeal that everyone jumped at, turned to look at her, and upon seeing she hadn't choked to death turned back to Draco. After giving Pansy a slightly confused look, Draco continued. "As such we have decided to continue our lives together and are to be wed."

Lucius smiled, Laurent raised an eyebrow and started clapping slowly, not sure what to do, Claire gave an excited "aha!" at the prospect of seeing a wedding, Narcissa gasped, and Ginny forgot to breathe for a moment.


	23. Ch22: The Calm Before the Storm

Title: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** My beta has not seen this but I felt I should at least put it up so you could read it.

**Author's Note: ** I really must apologize for the late update. School hit really hard, all of my classes had big tests at once and I had to juggle getting my car worked on, learning my job in a week, and trying to get something that resembled sleep every night. I hope this chapter is worthy of the time it took me to write it.

_Chapter Twenty-Two: The Calm Before the Storm_

Malfoy Manor had been swarmed with occupants within the first eight hours after Draco's announcement at the breakfast table. Narcissa, trying to keep some sort of composure had excused herself to go about making arrangements for the wedding and while leaving the room gave Draco a meaningful look that clearly conveyed their conversation had only yet to begin. Claire had practically skipped after Narcissa, declaring her desire to help in any way possible.

She reminded Ginny a bit of Fleur: French, a little arrogant, and easy to amuse.

Draco had joined his father in Lucius' study to talk about business, which Ginny could only assume meant they'd be smoking cigars, drinking brandy, and discussing ways to combine the fortunes and businesses of Parkinson and Malfoy.

Pansy, who had since been smiling smugly, turned to Ginny and resting her elbows on the table to prop up her chin, sighed happily.

Ginny, who would have none of Pansy's poor attempts to irritate her, lifted an eyebrow. Deciding against making a snide comment about Pansy having her elbows on the table, figuring the pug-faced twit would take it as jealousy; Ginny instead smiled widely and wove her arm through Laurent's. Pansy's smile faltered. "Pansy I'm so happy for you! I can't explain how great it is to know that Draco was able to move on after we broke up."

Ginny was partially happy that looks could not, in fact, kill, because at that time Pansy narrowed her eyes into slits. She parted her lips to retort but Ginny stood abruptly, startling Pansy into silence.

"Well, be sure to leave an invitation for me, though since the wedding will most likely be here I'll be part of Draco's guest list. Good luck with the planning and whatnot!" Ginny and Laurent moved for the door and as she stepped through into the hallway, Ginny turned to look over her shoulder and smirked at the dumbstruck Pansy.

Ginny had no lessons that day, which was wonderful since she didn't want to watch Narcissa try to remain calm meanwhile housing a hurricane of fury beneath her well-concealed guise. Instead, Ginny and Laurent spent most of the day together making small talk. For all that Ginny was able to hide her confusion about Draco's return, arm linked with Pansy's, she had no ability to hide her shock of Draco's declaration that morning.

She supposed Laurent knew this, for he did his best to choose topics that required little emotion or thinking on Ginny's part, and occasionally let the conversation sink into silence. During these moments Ginny's thoughts would wander to what she had seen in the past twenty four hours since Draco's return. He'd seemed extremely upset about something the night before. Was it that he didn't think she would move on quickly?

Was he really just reaffirming suspicions of a terrible ego? Or was there something more?

Ginny would love to believe there was something more, everything would make more sense (even though it would also raise more questions). But she couldn't let herself play into false hope. She wouldn't make a repeat of Harry Potter with Draco.

Instead, she decided that if Draco still had feelings for her, proposing to Pansy was an extremely cowardly way of going about things after he had broken up with Ginny. And if Draco wanted to be a coward, Ginny would treat him like one. She would continue her relationship with Laurent (she realized now that it had been in question as she mulled over her thoughts), and she would let Draco do as he please. He'd be in charge of calling the shots that way Ginny could make no mistakes and waste no time.

--

From two stories up Draco stood at the window of his father's study overlooking the gardens of Malfoy Manor, watching as Ginny and Laurent circled the pathways in silence. His fingertips gripped the rim of the small brandy snifter in his hand, threatening to possibly send it falling to the floor, but holding it firmly enough that it wouldn't. His jaw was set and Lucius watched as his son intently followed the two figures in the garden below.

"When did Claire arrive?" Draco asked voice a little tight.

A dark scowl crossed Lucius' face before his features fell back into a carefully controlled calm. "About two months after you left." He replied with a sort of disinterest. He was anything but disinterested, however. He was watching Draco closely for any reaction.

Lucius would be disappointed, and was, with Draco's cold acceptance of this news. With a nod Draco sipped his drink and turned back to Lucius who had to quickly school his surprise. "I hope she'll be able to stay for the wedding, although it seems she'll become a key part in planning." Draco smiled though it seemed a little forced.

There was silence in the room as Draco and Lucius sipped at their brandy and looked at different areas in the room. "I assume you've been in talks with the Parkinsons?" Draco asked, turning to his father.

Lucius, nodding, sat down in one of the wingback chairs. "I have. They've agreed to fifty percent of their profits as part of Pansy's dowry for the first five years and then thirty percent for every year after that."

Draco nodded, taking a seat across from his father in front of the fire.

--

Ginny leaned over the banister of her balcony looking out at the gardens. She'd made it relatively unscathed through the day and hadn't seen Draco since that morning. At dinner it was only Narcissa, Claire and Laurent. Lucius, Draco, and Pansy had decided to talk business with Pansy's family and Narcissa found she had neither the patience nor interest to be bothered with the Parkinsons that day. In fact at dinner she had been caught muttering something about Pansy being an "insufferable leech of a girl".

With a heavy sigh Ginny closed her eyes against the gentle breeze. The sun set late that night and it was still dragging the deep colors of sunset across the horizon. Above her head the stars were beginning to peak out from behind scattered clouds and treetops. Breathing in she could smell the distinct intermingling of the flowers she had planted the week before laced with the scent of an English summer.

Her long hair brushed against her arms and she shivered as the cool air brought goosebumps to her flesh. Slowly she opened her eyes and watched as the leaves danced against the lines of the hills surrounding Malfoy Manor.

Wrapping her arms tighter around her waist she stood upright, glad that she'd had enough sense to throw a sweater on over her tank top. Her legs, which were bare under her shorts, rarely grew cold but her arms were a different thing entirely. Pushing a few wayward strands of hair behind her ear she turned to walk back inside her room when something caught her eye below in the gardens.

Looking, she saw Draco circling the fountain in front of the ballroom. She couldn't help the way her breathe caught in her throat at the sight of him. His hair was loose around his face and his hands were thrust in the pockets of his trousers. His wide shoulders were accented by a thin gray sweater that made his fair skin shine even more in the dim light. As if sensing her gaze, he looked up to her on the balcony and for a moment they stood there.

It was Ginny who moved first, turning and walking back into her room, but as she did her heart gave an awful ache. She found herself leaving the door to the balcony open that night just in case.

--

"Draco Malfoy, never have I ever been so disappointed in your rude lack of manners and respect! Announcing at the breakfast table of all places your engagement, really? You must tell me, did you plan on giving me some sort of humiliation-derived cardiac arrest? Or was it by sheer accident that you happened to be a complete and total heathen?" Narcissa's eyes were aglow with adamant fury, her arms shaking as she braced herself against her desk.

Draco, despite having just come from training, couldn't help but be flushed as his mother berated him.

"As if you getting engaged to Pansy Parkinson out of all insipid, ignorant, insufferable wastes of clothing and makeup wasn't enough, you have to utterly disrespect your father and I in front of our guests! And your bride-to-be! While in training could you not possibly think of a better way to torture your own mother?"

"Oh, mother, be serious!" Draco snapped, stung at her last statement.

Narcissa, unscathed and fully intending on causing as much pain as necessary to her own son, continued, "Oh, but I am! You, the fruit of my loin, addressing me at the table along with everyone else in the world that you were getting married! How was I supposed to react to that Draco? You know how I feel about that twit and her family! The Parkinson's are awful company, they're all unintelligent, classless, barely pureblooded beasts that barely pass as human beings! And you plan on procreating with one of them! And I have to house Pansy until the wedding. My patience is thin enough, I absolutely will not tolerate her snide remarks about the décor, the landscaping, the architecture or any of my guests which includes Ginevra!"

Draco, sucking in his cheeks, narrowed his eyes slightly as Ginny's name was spoken. "Firstly, mother, I did not address everyone in the entire world when I gave the announcement at breakfast and I was planning on telling you earlier but the time seemed right at the moment. I apologize for offending your manners and beg your forgiveness but what is done can not be reversed. Second, Pansy is a perfectly high-income, pureblooded _girl _who happens to have strong feelings for me. She'd jump out of a window if I asked her to. Third, if she's said anything about the Manor it must have been in hopes she could one day design our future home in a similar, if slightly different, style. Lastly, I can not, nor will I, attempt to control anything she says about anyone. It simply can't be done."

Narcissa narrowed her eyes in return. "Let me make something perfectly clear to you _son_, if she so much as rolls an eye in my direction or insults Ginevra one more time- and I have heard them so it's not just Ginevra being catty- I swear to you by the power of Merlin, Grindewald, Dumbledore, and Voldemort himself that I will personally escort that girl out of this house and out of any courtship with you as if my very existence depended on it. Am I understood?"

Draco waited for his mother's breathing to return to semi-normal before nodding. He was dismissed and made it a point to find Pansy and warn her of her impending doom should she step one foot out of line. He couldn't let his intended be seen in a scuffle with his own mother. That would be too hard to explain to the magazines.

--

Three days later Ginny found herself trying to find some sort of solace in the formal living room as various important people spoke quietly to each other. It was Draco's birthday and she'd practically been bribed by Narcissa to make an appearance. "Of course you could miss it," Narcissa had said, "But what a pity it would be to end your social career because of a squabble." The unsaid threat of Ginny never having a social life should she not be in attendance was far worse than conceding to a glass or two of champagne before running to her room.

She had decided on twenty minutes being an acceptably long enough time before mysteriously becoming out of sight. Everything was going to plan. She was on her second glass of champagne, sipping slowly so Crabbe's father wouldn't rush to get her a refill like he had before. She was still wondering whether or not he'd drugged her as she wandered back and forth in front of the window.

Laurent and Claire had received an owl earlier on in the day about some important business at their villa that required their presence. To Ginny's dismay she was not needed and was left alone to deal with Pansy and her high pitched explanations of minute wedding details, a variety of old men and their wandering eyes, and Draco's resolute avoidance of her. The last part didn't bother her quite as much as she'd expected, in fact halfway through her first glass of champagne, which she had tried to rush through in order for the alcohol to somehow lessen her boredom, she'd forgotten why she was even there.

Now she was tapping a polished fingernail lightly against her glass, one arm wrapped around her waist, staring into the front of the Manor. The grass had been cut and the trees in the courtyard were swaying with the wind. The sun was about to set behind the building and the horizon in the front was a deep indigo dotted with stars. Momentarily Ginny was reminded of the night a few days ago and the moment shared between her and Draco. This of course, disappeared when a peeling screech of laughter echoed off of the walls as Pansy gasped for breath after finding something Lucius said rather funny.

Ginny, raising an eyebrow turned and eyed the girl with as much decorum as possible but couldn't hide the annoyance in her eyes. She knew this because at the very moment she found where Pansy was, Draco looked over from next to Pansy and locked eyes with Ginny, cheeks slightly tinged red. He inhaled, clenching his jaw, and turned away, aware of exactly the thoughts running through Ginny's mind.

"You _can't _be serious!" Pansy dropped a hand over her chest, her head rolling back as she laughed another time. "Her? In my wedding?"

Ginny's stomach nearly jumped out of her body as Pansy turned her head towards Ginny and fought hiding a sneer. Lucius, who was barely hiding his disapproval of Pansy's outburst, was gripping his cane tightly and parted his lips to reply. "I am being perfectly serious. She is, after all, practically a Malfoy now. You should treat her as if she were Draco's sister."

Ginny would have been perfectly fine had the room resumed its conversations and not sunken into a silence to listen in on what Pansy and Lucius were talking about. She would have also been fine had the room _not _turned around to eye her with incredulity. At that very moment she dearly wanted to be swallowed by the floor.

Pansy, who was raising a far too thin eyebrow, snorted. "If I had a brother I don't think we'd have quite the past Ginny and Draco do." She muttered, but the room was small and quiet enough for Ginny and everyone else to understand what she had said with perfect clarity.

Ginny could barely contain herself as she set her champagne glass down on the nearest flat surface, excused herself from the room, and marched through the dining room, back corridor, and ballroom to the one place she was sure to find some semblance of peace: the gardens.

Clenching her fists, Ginny shook her hair out of her face, the wind blowing the tendrils that weren't pulled back around. The next gust of wind made her shiver, her bare strapless dress doing little to shield her from its chill. Crossing her arms in front of her chest she listened to the click-clacking of her heels on the pavers as she stomped around in ire. "Stupid sodding cow! Slag! Bloody bint! I ought to…"

"Miss Weasley?"

Ginny froze in horror as she realized the voice resonating from behind her was that of Lucius Malfoy and she was currently using extremely common language to explain who would become his future daughter in law. Turning, Ginny pasted a smile on her face, and shivered. "Sir?"

Lucius, who had looked as if he were battling who to be more ashamed of, Ginny or Pansy, just waited for a moment before speaking. "I wanted to inquire as to your intentions during Draco and Pansy's wedding."

Ginny blinked. "Sir?"

"Do you plan on being part of the bridal party?"

Ginny opened her mouth, then closed it slightly, then sighed. "I wasn't aware Pansy had agreed to anything of the sort. I'd planned on being part of the audience, throwing petals or whatever Pansy would want thrown at her."

Lucius raised an eyebrow, nodded curtly, then returned inside. Ginny's shoulders slumped as she turned back around and fell onto the edge of the fountain. She pushed her elbows onto her knees and sank her forehead into her palms. "I'm sure this night could only get better…" She muttered sardonically and as if on cue someone behind her coughed.

Twisting around she saw Draco, hands in his pockets, nearly glaring at her. Groaning, Ginny resumed her position. "Bloody brilliant." She whispered beneath her breath, shaking her head. "What do you want Draco?" She called out, not moving.

For a moment he said nothing and stood behind her. Ginny wondered if he'd pulled out his wand and was preparing to curse her. Finally she heard him clear his throat and it became clear that the distance between them hadn't changed any. "I'm here to ask you to excuse Pansy's comments. I understand they may have been offensive-"

"They weren't offensive Draco, they were just exhausting," Ginny snapped, bracing her chin in her hands. "Why are you here Draco?"

There was a pause and it seemed like the past was trying to repeat itself. Ginny immediately regretted her words. "My mother has shown a distinct dislike for Pansy and in doing so has requested Pansy act with the utmost pedigree. Her actions betray that and mother wished for me to apologize for it. Pansy of course saw no error in her ways."

Ginny chuckled. "Of course not, Pansy lacks errors in her ways," she muttered sarcastically.

Draco said nothing and they both waited in the silence of the night as the wind shook the leaves. Ginny ran out of patience and stood, turning to face Draco. His face betrayed him for a moment, slight shock crossing his features. Ginny wasn't particularly surprised; it was rare that she seemed so outright infuriated with him.

"Draco Malfoy, tell me what you want or for pity's sake leave me alone." The last part of her second was spoken in earnest. She was tired and ready to be done with the night. Having Draco stare at her without saying a word was the last thing she needed.

He watched her for a moment, jaw still set. Turning on his heel he went back inside leaving Ginny slightly confused but just more aware of how little she liked Draco Malfoy.

--

Ginny rolled over in her bed, cursing herself for leaving the curtains pulled back. The sunlight was causing a heavy ache on her eyelids. Groaning, she pushed back the covers of her bed, stood, and promptly collapsed in a heap on the floor. She hissed obscenities into the wooden floor before slowly pushing herself onto her hands and knees. Crawling to the window she pulled the curtains shut, one at a time, and crawled back to bed where she pulled herself onto the mattress.

Swallowing slowly, her throat dry and sore, she used her wand to call a house elf. Babsy arrived with a pop and wringing her small leathery hands, stepped tentatively towards Ginny's curled up form on the bed. "Missus called for Babsy?"

Ginny let out a rattling cough and groaned again. "Babsy, I've taken ill, get me some water would you and tell Narcissa I won't be coming down today?" Ginny let out another cough and immediately regretted it as the room started to spin. "Hell." She mumbled as Babsy gave some sort of affirmative answer and apparated away.

Within seconds her bedroom door opened and a large woman dressed in a nurses smock stepped inside followed by Claire. Ginny blearily watched as Claire came over to her bedside and the woman began digging through a bag. "Claire? I thought you were in France?"

Claire frowned and clucked her tongue. "You sound awful, Ginevra. Narcissa was correct as usual."

Ginny frowned. "Correct? Did she know I was sick before I did?" At that moment the nurse marched over to the bedside.

"Alright now, save the conversations for later, ladies." The woman reminded Ginny of her own mother, business first. Pulling out her wand, the nurse pressed it to Ginny's forehead, her neck, then her wrist. After pulling away she made some sort of intricate design in the air and words began to form in smoke in different colors. "You've got a low-grade fever and a terrible cough." The nurse reached for a potion she had set down on the bedside table upon sitting down. "The flu, I expect."

Ginny coughed again, covering her mouth with a loose fist. She felt like she had the flu. All of her energy was gone, everything was spinning, her body hurt everywhere and to top it all off she felt like she was about to heave at any minute. "Is there anything I can take to make the room stop circling around me?"

The nurse smiled softly and handed the potion to Ginny who could barely hold onto it. "It won't taste wonderful, but it ought to do the trick."

Ginny uncorked the small bottle and downed the green liquid as quickly as she could, fighting the reaction to gag at its bitter taste. "My god that's awful." She gasped for air as she laid back down.

The nurse left and Claire reached out a cool hand to smooth away the hair from Ginny's face. "Dear Ginevra, I should send Laurent up here to visit. You will need company to feel better."

Ginny smiled slightly and shook her head. "I'd rather he see me when I'm well."

Claire nodded and stood. "Narcissa isn't feeling well either; she said you were probably ill as well. I shall have to take over wedding plans for now." The last part wasn't said with the same somber attitude as the rest. Ginny knew Claire was excited about the wedding and any chance to do be a part of the planning process made the woman elated.

Ginny nodded her head in response, already feeling the hands of sleep grip her. As she snuggled deeper beneath the covers her mind fogged over and she was asleep before Claire left the room.

A few hours later, when the noontime sun was just overhead, Ginny felt the easing of her muscles welcome her to the waking world. It was amazing how much a simple potion could help her to feel better. She still felt wretched, of course, but she was no where near the agony she was in that morning. Rolling over beneath the sheets she let out a scream as her eyes made out a figure in her room.

"Ginevra! Ginevra! Calm down! It's just me!" Laurent's voice began to soothe her.

Slowly Ginny felt her muscles relax but the adrenaline was still rushing through her system. "My god Laurent, you gave me a heart attack." She put her hand over her racing heart. Falling against her pillows, she exhaled swiftly. "What are you doing in here? I'm sick and might be contagious."

Laurent chuckled and approached her bed. She suddenly wondered what her breath must smell like and brought the covers up to hide her mouth. "Don't worry Ginevra, I have a fabulous immune system. I wanted to see how you were doing. When Aunt Claire told me you weren't feeling well I got worried."

Ginny smiled and let out a small cough despite her best efforts to avoid it. Laurent frowned at this and sat at the foot of her bed, rubbing her leg affectionately. There was a knock at the door and it was Ginny's turn to frown. Who would be knocking on her door? The knock was swift and…

Ginny froze as the knob turned. She knew he was on the other side of that door.

Draco appeared, his face guarded as he leaned in and looked at them. "Well then, that's what all that commotion was?" Sneering, he slammed the door shut; his footsteps echoed down the hallway.

Ginny crinkled her nose in thought as Laurent started talking. What was Draco doing coming and checking on her scream? Usually that was a house elves job. Had he been worried about her? Or had he been genuinely curious? Had he been the closest person to her door, and if so, why?

--

Ginny let out a pitiful cough and rubbed a hand across her eyes. She felt so much better than she had the day before, and to top it all off with any luck Draco and Pansy would be busy with wedding plans, too busy to bother her, at least.

Rolling over under the sheets she pushed herself up and walked into the bathroom where she began her daily routine. She pulled her hair up into a high ponytail after drying it, applied the least amount of makeup charms as necessary, and walked back into her room to decide her outfit. Figuring she could be as casual as she would like that day, she divulged in a pair of dark jeans and a purple jumper.

She gazed longingly at her trainers, wanting more than anything to be comfortable that day, but instead reached for a pair of brown boots. After slipping them on, glad they didn't have any complicated zippers or whatnot, she bounded out of her room, surprisingly eager to make it to breakfast.

She pressed the door to the dining room open and was relieved to see Narcissa and Claire in deep conversation, but no one else in the room. "Morning." She greeted them, sitting down in the chair open by Narcissa.

Claire smiled at her, sipping her orange juice, and Narcissa nodded as she continued speaking to Claire. "Although it's admirable that she wants to help, I don't necessarily trust her taste level," Narcissa explained, what Ginny assumed, her preference to have Pansy uninvolved in planning the wedding. "After it's all sorted she'll see it was best to leave it to us." Turning to Ginny, Narcissa added, "It's good to see you up and about. I assume you're feeling better?"

Ginny nodded, having already taken a bite of her toast, and chewed quickly. "Yes, much," She said without choking on the bread. "Is Laurent coming down for breakfast?" She looked at Claire who smiled sadly.

"He is sick. He must have caught what you had."

Ginny sighed and sipped at her juice. She would have to go through her first day free of Draco and Pansy by herself then. Narcissa and Claire went back to talking about the wedding which made Ginny quickly lose her appetite. She wasn't hung up on Draco (or at least she was doing a good job of repressing any emotions that may have made it seem that way), but all this talk about how much closer she'd be to Pansy was making her nauseous. She excused herself and started for Laurent's room.

Once she got to the door, she gave it a soft knock, listening for a response. When there was none, she pushed it open and found him still curled up beneath the covers of his bed. Smiling, she closed the door gently behind her and walked over. The room was smaller than hers, as it was one of the spare bedrooms, and soon she was able to see his calm face as he slept. Reaching out a hand, she tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear and watched him stir slightly.

Leaning forward she placed a chaste kiss to his cheek which made him blink his eyes open. "Ginevra? Is everything all right?" He asked, pushing up so he was sitting.

Ginny nodded and situated herself beside him on the bed so her knees were beside his hip and she was looking at him. "You weren't at breakfast so I figured I'd check up on you."

Laurent ran a hand through his hair and yawned. "I am not feeling too good. I'm sorry." He smiled at her.

Ginny giggled and leaned to the side, her elbow next to his knee and her palm on her chin. "So much for your strong immune system," She teased.

Getting a mischievous smirk on his face, Laurent raised an eyebrow. "Since I got this from you, does that mean you can not get it again?"

Ginny thought for a moment. "I think that's the way it works, yeah."

Laurent grabbed her then, holding her down on the bed as he trailed kisses on her neck. "Then it won't make you sick again if I should, say, kiss you on the lips?" He asked in a whisper, letting his lips brush against hers.

She was in a haze, partly because despite being asleep this whole time, his breath still smelt like mint. The other part was because heat was now rushing through her blood and heightening her senses to his ministrations. Pushing up, she connected lips with him. He released her arms from the hold he had on them, holding himself up with his forearms. One of his hands softly trailed up and down the skin beneath her jumper. Ginny replied by threading her fingers through his hair and shivering at his touch.

They stayed like that, caressing each other lightly and kissing until Ginny had to leave for her lessons. Narcissa had decided helping to plan the wedding would be a perfect chance for Ginny to interact with the business side of the social elite. Waving a kiss goodbye, Ginny left Laurent to get more sleep and met Narcissa in the drawing room downstairs where she proceeded to spend a good deal of the morning cursing Draco for inadvertently giving her so much work to do.


	24. Ch23: Thunder in the Distance

Title: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** Another chapter with little dialogue, but all the importance in the world!

Oh, and p.s. Laurent is pronounced "Lore-ent," with emphasis on the 'ent'. It's kind of like Lauren but with a 't' at the end.

**Author's Note: **Now that school is out I have more time to write. What does this mean? Well, more frequent chapter updates of course! I'm very proud to say this story has accumulated 400 plus reviews which makes me VERY happy! I have a plot outline I work off of and, believe it or not, we're VERY close to the end of this fic! I'm extremely excited because this will be the first fic EVER that I've completed, and I couldn't have hoped to do it with a better fic.

I want to thank everyone for reviewing, it really does motivate me to continue writing, I'm not just saying that. I'm in the process of working with my beta to rewrite the chapters (for grammar, spelling, and clarity) and have recently uploaded an edited prologue. With any luck I'll start posting this story on FIA! Oh, and all my love to AceCade, who saw it fit to review _every _chapter. That makes me exuberantly happy. Enjoy the chapter, I know I enjoyed writing it.

_Chapter Twenty-Three: Thunder in the Distance_

Ginny clenched and unclenched her jaw. Pansy was going on again about how perfect her wedding was going to be. If Ginny didn't have to help plan the whole thing, she'd tell Pansy to shove the wedding up her arse, but as it was, Ginny was in charge of organizing the bridal party. "Repeat back to me all of that," Pansy demanded as she inspected her wedding dress in the circle of mirrors.

They had set up a fitting room in the ballroom so Pansy could be fitted for her dress. Narcissa, and Claire who had taken to shadowing Narcissa during the whole planning process, had gone off to finalize contracts with caterers leaving Ginny with Pansy. Instead of taking her wand and avada-ing herself, Ginny was trying the hardest she could to be somewhat civil to Pansy. She was almost about to launch herself at the pug-faced girl, though, and had to take a moment before speaking lest she utter things that ought remain in her thoughts.

"The maid of honor will be wearing teal with a red sash and the bridesmaids will be wearing brown with a red sash." Ginny regurgitated the color combinations Pansy had shouted at her through the changing room.

"Ouch! You bleeding cow!" Pansy snapped as the fitter prodded her with a pin. "Just because red is one of my colors doesn't mean I want my dress stained with my own blood!"

Ginny shot the woman who had nearly been bowled over by Pansy an apologetic look before rubbing her temples. She had been genuinely surprised when Pansy had chosen red for a color in her wedding, but Ginny knew it was more for the color of blood than the Gryffindoric connotation it held. Sighing, she looked out towards the garden, tempted to run for her life if need be.

"Weasley, are you even paying attention to me?" Pansy's shrill voice was closer than it was before.

Jumping slightly, Ginny turned her head to find Pansy, hands on her hips, standing in front of Ginny. "If I'm going to trust you with any responsibility at least attempt to act like you're not a deaf, mute, imbecile."

Ginny narrowed her eyes at the girl. "I'm going to get some air." She stood and threw her notepad and quill on the chair she had just occupied. "And I suggest you go a size up in your dress, squeezing yourself into it is why the fitter keeps stabbing you with pins."

Leaving a cursing and screaming Pansy behind, Ginny stepped out into the courtyard, footsteps echoing on the pavers as she tried to get as far away from Pansy as possible. Glad to be away for a moment, Ginny went to the nearest bench and fell onto it. She ran her fingers through her hair, sighing. How did she wind up helping marry her ex-boyfriend and the most annoying girl to ever walk the halls of Hogwarts? Surely there had to be some sort of cosmic law which prevented this?

Knowing full well she had put herself into the situation she was in, Ginny did her best to bite back her anger. Or was it jealousy?

She had to admit, it stung to see Draco move on so quickly. It hurt to see him so ready to marry Pansy when just six months before it was Ginny in his arms instead.

But six months was a long time, she reasoned. Within three months of receiving the letter she had developed strong feelings for Laurent. Strong, but not the same as what she felt for Draco. But what could she do about it? Beg him to take her back? Grovel?

Weasley's didn't grovel. Ginny wouldn't subject herself to the humiliation of Draco smarting off some sort of comment about his ability to draw women to him. She couldn't do that, couldn't see him look at her and not care that she was hurting. Couldn't take the rejection. So instead, she would keep her mouth shut and do her best to pick up the pieces of her heart, and maybe even give them to Laurent.

She stood once she was sure she wouldn't personally stab Pansy with all the pins she could find, and walked back to the ballroom. As she stepped inside she was surprised to find the fitter sitting on a chair outside the changing room.

Frowning, Ginny walked over to her. "Where's Pansy? What's going on?"

The fitter shrugged. "She won't come out."

Groaning, Ginny lifted her weary body onto the platform where the changing room was set up and knocked on the door. "Pansy, are you coming out anytime soon? You've got to go cake testing in a few."

A petulant sniffle could be heard through the cracks in the door causing Ginny to frown. "I'm not feeling well." Pansy's voice was strained.

"Are you crying?" Ginny asked a little disgusted.

"Of course not!" Pansy nearly ripped the door off its hinges as she opened it. Her eyes were bloodshot and her blotchy complexion gave away her lie. "I've got allergies!"

Ginny rolled her eyes. "For Merlin's sake Pansy, I was angry. Don't take it seriously." Pansy sniffled again and slammed the door shut in Ginny's face. That would be the last time Ginny attempted to apologize for offending Pansy's self-image.

--

Ginny reveled in the warm sunlight that blanketed her body. She was laying out on the edge of the fountain, forearm over her eyes as she tried to relax from her morning with Pansy. They had met up with the bridal party so the dresser could start draping all of their gowns. It had been the same group from the dance that had clued Ginny in on Blaise's true intentions. She supposed she ought to be grateful to them for their honesty (however concealed in cattiness it was), but she couldn't help but flinch at the way the always referred to Pansy as 'Mrs. Malfoy'.

It was bad enough that she had to run into Draco in the hallways or be subjected to scathing glares from his soon-to-be, but Ginny could handle this. In fact, the worse part was that she had finally acknowledged that she had lost Draco. She had been holding out, waiting for some sort of clue that he may still have feelings for her, but the looks he gave her were evidence enough. Something had happened to change the way he felt, and it had worked flawlessly.

She sighed again. The bridal party had all loved their dresses. For that, Ginny was happy. She wouldn't have to deal with Pansy barking orders at her, demanding responses, changing her mind every thirty minutes. She supposed she ought to be grateful to Pansy especially. It was because of that girl's never-failing stubbornness to make Ginny's life busy that Ginny hadn't had enough time to think about Draco.

Except now, that is, in the garden. Pansy was gone with her bridal party, and had given Ginny every clear indication that she was not invited. Ginny hadn't wanted to go anyway. She was the bridal party planner, any more involvement, and she may just hang herself off her balcony.

Although, she thought as she frowned, she may do that after her most recent string of thoughts. All of them revolving around Draco.

As if conjured up out of her thoughts, she heard his deep baritone as he instructed a house elf on what to do with the furniture in his room. Apparently the idea Pansy had that morning to move into his room early had caught him a little off guard. Ginny smirked at this. Maybe Draco didn't like his bride-to-be as much as he tried to play off. Moving her arm, she turned her head and saw the house elf disappear with a 'pop'.

Draco turned, saw her, and froze. Taking a step back he seemed like he was trying to slowly blend in with the house. Nearly growling Ginny threw her arm away from her face and sat up, crossing her legs and massaging her forehead. "Honestly, Draco, can you not do the 'don't make eye contact, back away slowly' business? I think we could at least act like adults in this whole situation."

Draco, shocked at her words, waited. She saw the muscles in his jaw move under his skin as he contemplated her words. "Fine," he said.

Ginny took a deep breath and nodded. "Well, then, good." She looked at him, watching his body language. To anyone else he would've seemed calm and controlled, but to her, he was feeling uncomfortable. Before she could think about what she was doing she'd taken a step farther. "I don't want us to be this way," she said quietly.

Draco clearly hadn't been expecting this, dropping his jaw a bit. He stepped forward, eyebrows furrowed. "I don't…" he trailed off. Shaking his head, Ginny could see his mood change instantly. His eyes were hard again, his face stony. "I'll be civil, but don't fool yourself into thinking we'll be best friends again." And with that he was gone.

--

Ginny did not have lessons the next day. Instead, she woke to a letter sitting on her bedside table written in Draco's handwriting.

_Ginevra,_

_Mother's ill. _

_-Draco_

--

Ginny became aware of someone walking down the hallway. Turning her head slightly, she saw Claire step through a doorway, disappearing into the room inside. Narcissa's room. Ginny turned her head back against her folded arms. Closing her eyes, she tried not to cry again. Her face hurt from it, the edges of her eyes were rough from wiping away her tears, her sides burned from sobbing. She let her head fall from side to side, felt the muscles in her neck burn in protestation. She'd been sitting outside of Narcissa's room since that morning waiting for a diagnosis, but no matter what the Healer tried, there were no questions that could be answered. Worse, there was nothing that could be done, but wait.

Slowly she picked her head up, letting it fall against the wall behind her. Sniffling, she pushed her legs out to stretch them. After getting the letter from Draco she'd quickly dressed and made her way to Narcissa's room. There she'd stayed since that morning, arms wrapped around her knees, sitting on the ground. Leaning forward, she rubbed her soar muscles through the denim pants she wore. After working through what knots she could, she pulled her legs back to her body. It was as if she was trying to hold herself together.

In a way, she was.

Narcissa had been the one constant in her life at the Manor. She'd been the one to rescue Ginny, she'd been the one to teach her, clothe her, feed her, and mentor her. She was more of a mother than any other name Ginny could conjure up in her muddled thoughts. It was true, Narcissa Malfoy really had become Ginny's second mother. Of course, no one could compare to Molly Weasley in that department, but Narcissa had taken Ginny in and turned her into the young woman she was. The young woman feeling every last reserve slip away as the tears behind her eyelids pushed down her cheeks.

Narcissa couldn't die, couldn't be so sick that no one could think of anything to do, couldn't be nearing the end of her life on the other side of the wall that held Ginny up. Narcissa had been keeping Ginny safe in the Manor. Without Narcissa, the only people Ginny had were Lucius, and Draco, neither of which she would trust with her life at this point. Yes, Lucius had started to show some liking to her, but Ginny wouldn't forget what Snape had told her. Lucius was trying to trap her in his web, and she wouldn't let him do it. She wouldn't let him be the only person keeping her alive.

But here she was. Just like with Ron, Hermione, and Harry. She couldn't do anything to help the dying woman in the room behind her, just like she couldn't help her brother and friends. No matter how far away her parents sent her, the truth remained the same. Ginny was utterly useless in this war. There was nothing she could do.

"Ginevra?"

Ginny's head snapped up as Claire's cool voice drifted down the hall. Looking over, Claire was holding open the door to Narcissa's room. "She wants to see you."

Ginny couldn't have stood any faster, couldn't have crossed that distance any quicker. Stepping through the doorway into the dark room, all she could hear was the dull beating of her heart in her chest. It was as if the organ was trying to escape, to free itself from a torture chamber. Maybe, in effect, it had the right idea. Lately, it seemed any heart trapped inside Ginny's body would have been badly injured.

Trying her best to slow her breathing so her heart would follow, she stepped carefully through the shadows of the room. The curtains had been drawn and only a few candles lit around the bed. Ginny had never been in this room before. It was majestic with vaulted ceilings, murals on the walls that Ginny could decipher through the darkness, and richly designed furniture. Spotting where Narcissa lay, Ginny walked until she was by the bed.

Now that she was seeing Narcissa, something she'd been waiting to do all morning, she had no idea what to do. She did the first thing she could think of. "Narcissa?"

The woman in the bed was not the woman Ginny remembered. She was slow, fragile, exhausted, and grey. Turning her head, Narcissa reached out her hand for Ginny's. Taking Narcissa's hand, Ginny, sat slowly on the bed, not wanting to move the bed.

"Ginny," Narcissa said, her voice barely a whisper, "Ginny, I'm so sorry. I'm sorry I can't protect you."

Ginny's bottom lip began to quiver. "No, Narcissa, you'll be okay. They'll find out what's wrong and fix you. You'll be okay, everything will be okay." Ginny was grasping Narcissa's thin, shaking hand between hers.

Narcissa smiled slightly, the edges of her lips barely curving upwards. "Ginny, your optimism was always so refreshing." Narcissa let out a haggard cough that made Ginny jump. "My god, this wedding couldn't have come at a worse time."

Ginny tried to smile at Narcissa's vain attempt to carry on casual conversation, but the dark circles under her eyes, the fact that she could never quite focus on anything gave Narcissa's true condition away. "Yes, well, I think we'd all agree that this wedding could probably fail at coming at a right time."

Narcissa tried to laugh, chuckling a bit before coughing again. After dropping her hand from her lips she exhaled slowly, making Ginny think that if Narcissa were to let out one long breath, it would be her last. "I don't understand," Narcissa shook her head. "I don't understand why he chose her. I wanted him to choose you, but instead he went for…" She couldn't continue, coughing again as her breathing accelerated.

"Narcissa," Ginny pleaded, her hands flying over Narcissa's body, looking for someway to help. "Narcissa, please don't stress your body, you've got to let yourself heal. Think about things like that later." _Please,_ Ginny thought, _I can't stand to think about that now, too. _

Narcissa nodded, pushing her shoulders into the pillows that held her up. She grimaced, pain sweeping across her expression for a moment before she settled back down. "Ginny," Narcissa mumbled, "I'll do what I can to keep you safe. I won't let you come to harm."

Ginny swallowed roughly, the burning in her throat signaling another bout of tears. "I know, Narcissa. I know you will. You'll get over this. You'll get better. I know you will."

"Claire?" Narcissa asked, turning her head to the door.

Claire stepped forward, raising her eyebrows.

"Get me some tea, please, if you would?"

Claire nodded and disappeared.

Ginny couldn't think of anything to say. Soon the even breathing of Narcissa gave her the sign to leave. She walked into the hallway, closing the door lightly behind her. Narcissa had to pull through this. Ginny knew she wouldn't survive without her.

--

Ginny stepped into her steaming shower, hissing as the hot water soaked her body. She waited for her body to adjust, and then stood fully under the stream of water. Closing her eyes, she concentrated on the feeling of each muscle loosening beneath her skin starting from her neck, and moving down her shoulders and back. Despite having gotten plenty of sleep the night before, she felt terribly exhausted.

The entire day she'd spent waiting for news on Narcissa's condition, but everything she learned only made her feel worse. They still didn't know what it was that had happened to her, still didn't know how to fix it, how to stop it, how to save her. Instead, Narcissa was dying, and Ginny could do nothing.

Ginny reached out and put her hand flat against the tile wall, having to hold herself up against the sobs that were shaking her. She had tried not to cry in front of anyone, tried to hold herself together. Now she could barely hold herself upright. Pushing her hair back out of her face with her other hand, she slowly sank to the floor of the shower onto her knees. Palm still pressed against the wall, she gasped for air between each cry.

How could this be happening? How could nothing be done? This couldn't be what Ginny and Laurent had, this wasn't the flu. This was much worse. Was it somehow connected to her condition?

There were so many questions Ginny had, none of them able to be answered. She was angry. Angry at the Healer's for not knowing, not acting, not helping. She was angry at Lucius for not caring enough to leave his business trip to be with his dying wife. She was angry at Claire for not seeming sad enough. She was angry at Laurent for trying to be too consoling. She was angry at Pansy for being the one to comfort Draco.

She was angry at Draco for not coming to her. She was angry at this whole situation. She was furious with everything. She hated herself. She hated herself for being so useless, for being a coward, for being so afraid of living without anyone's help. She was so afraid of living in the Manor without Narcissa. She was terrified.

Above all she was lost. She was confused. And now with Narcissa on her deathbed, Ginny felt more alone than she had ever before. Yes, she had Laurent. Yes, there was Claire. But, to be frank, there was no deep bond with either of them. Laurent was not someone she would be best friends with, fall in love with, marry. Laurent was to pass the time. Laurent was helping her reaffirm that not all men were like Harry, Blaise, or Draco. That she didn't have to find either Michael Corners' or Dean Thomas' just to keep a boyfriend who wouldn't leave or abuse her.

Laurent was nice, comfortable. But, not even Laurent could soothe her right now. She needed Ron or Hermione, she needed her mum or dad, she needed Fred and George to make her laugh, Percy to make her see the realistically bright side of things, Bill or Charlie to take her mind off of things.

She needed Narcissa to live.

After she had cried more than she knew she could, she finished her shower with occasional tears. Reaching up to the nozzle she turned the water off, grabbing the towel with a wet hand and drying her hair off a bit. Pushing open the stall door, she stepped onto the cool stone floor. Turning to her bedroom, a hand closed tightly around her throat, launching her against the mirror above her sink.

Her eyes watered as her breathing was stopped, her chest started burning as she tried to catch a breath. Her fingertips were prying at the fingers against her skin but to no avail. Slowly, she opened her eyes to see who her assailant was.

There stood Draco Malfoy, eyes bloodshot and raging, expression absolutely frightening as he glared at her. Coughing, trying to do anything to get some air, Ginny squirmed against his strangle hold. "Can't breathe…" she barely whispered.

Draco's jaw twitched, his nostrils flaring. "Good," he snapped, his voice rasping, velvet and gravel.

Ginny's eyes widened as she wondered whether he was going to kill her.

"You knew," he began, "You knew this whole time she was dying, and said nothing. I don't know how you could…" he trailed off. His hold on her tightened fractionally, and Ginny began kicking her legs out towards him. Seeing her attempt to fight, he pulled her back from the mirror and threw her back against it. Behind her head, she could hear the mirror crack. The back of her skull was getting warm, and she was beginning to lose focus.

"She… made me promise… not to tell," Ginny tried to explain, hands leaving deep red lines on his arm as she tried to pull it away.

Draco again forced her into the mirror. This time Ginny could feel pieces of the glass cut into her scalp. "Draco stop!" She tried to scream, but could barely manage a whisper.

Draco brought his other hand, clenched into a fist, smashing into the mirror beside her face. Tears were flowing down her cheeks, lips turning a light purple. "You knew about everything! Fuck promises! You knew! You knew and you didn't tell me! Did you think it wasn't worth me knowing my mother was dying? Did you think I didn't have the right to know?" He hollered.

Ginny could feel unconsciousness pulling at her. "Please…" she tried.

Sneering, Draco pulled her forward and threw her onto the bathroom floor. "Fucking pathetic bitch. Fucking bint." He slammed the door as he left. Ginny didn't move from that spot for a long time.

--

Ginny sat at the edge of her bed looking down at her hands. That whole morning she had avoided everyone like the plague. She hadn't even left her room to see Narcissa. The night before, lying on the cold bathroom floor after Draco left her and terrified her, she had wondered about the state of things. Maybe she should be glad Draco didn't love her anymore? If he was this violent, maybe she should be glad he had moved on to Pansy. No, she couldn't wish Draco's behavior on anyone. She would hate to know that Pansy suffered the same fate that Ginny had last night.

But she had felt a sudden relief that he had parted ways with her. In a sense, he had provided a perfect catalyst for her to move on. A knock came at the door. Ginny turned to see Laurent walk in, grinning from ear to ear. He had come back from his trip with Lucius, whatever trip it was, and had been trying to see her all morning. Ginny, of course, refused everyone until she had healed all of the bruises on her neck and the cuts in her scalp. She had the house elves replace her mirror and clean up all the blood.

Laurent crossed the room to where she was, sitting beside her. "Ginevra, I have been looking for you all over the place." He slowly wrapped his arms around her stiff and sore body, kissing her gently. She relaxed a bit.

"I'm sorry I've been in hiding. The news about Narcissa is still making me feel ill in the mornings, it takes me a bit to feel better," she lied easily.

Laurent nodded, rubbing her back. "It is unfortunate. I had wanted this to come at a better time." He shook his head.

Ginny frowned. Wanted what to come at a better time? Narcissa dying? That really couldn't come at a good time. And how did he know it was coming at all? Laurent must have seen her expression. He shook his head quickly, smiling.

"I am sorry; I had been planning this only for a week or so. I thought now would have been the perfect time, but this happened. I suppose it's as good a time as any, no?"

Sliding off the bed, Laurent dropped down to one knee. All of a sudden Ginny felt ill. She opened her mouth to tell him to stop, but didn't speak. Her mind started turning. She had been holding out for Draco this whole time, waiting for him to come back to her. He showed last night that he was clearly not interested in her love, or her ability to breathe. Maybe she had Laurent wrong? Maybe he really was someone she should try to be with. She couldn't say she'd been one hundred percent loyal to him. Part of her was always with Draco. But she was sure that part was back.

All these thoughts seemed to cross before her mind in the split second it took Laurent to reach into his pocket. Now, she was watching as he pulled out a velvet covered box which he opened slowly to reveal an oval diamond on a gold band. "Ginevra," he began and Ginny couldn't feel her toes, "I've been trying to wait for you, trying to wait so the time would be right, but I can't. I wanted this to be perfect, but I have no patience."

Ginny felt a tear slide down her cheek, she wasn't sure why, though. Was she sad? No, she wasn't sad. She wasn't happy, though, either. She was lost. She was lost because Narcissa should be there to tell her what to do, tell her how to answer. Should she say yes? Should she wait for real, passionate, true love? Did it exist for her?

"Ginevra, make me the happiest man. Be my wife?"

Ginny blinked away the tears. "Yes."

--

Ginny's footsteps echoed down the hallway to Narcissa's room. As she turned the knob she could've been certain that she had heard a sob, but by the time she got to Narcissa's side the woman was composed. "Ginny," Narcissa sighed, holding out her hand for Ginny to sit next to her on the bed. Ginny complied, trying to move the bed as little as possible. She made a point to lay one hand over the other, covering the ring Laurent had slipped on her finger not two hours before.

It seemed right after Laurent had exclaimed joyously, a house elf had appeared asking Ginny to see Narcissa after lunch. Ginny had been relieved that she'd been called. She could talk to Narcissa about Laurent, talk to her about what to do. Ginny had said yes, but she had meant maybe.

As soon as these thoughts entered Ginny's mind, as if on cue, Narcissa frowned. "Ginny, you seem worried."

Ginny nodded, clenching her jaw. She'd try to omit the part about Draco. The last thing Narcissa needed was to know her son was a violent beast. "Laurent proposed this morning." Ginny had meant to come up with some sort of lead in, a transition maybe, not just blurting it out quite like that. Instead her brain had been subjected to the whims of her body.

Narcissa widened her eyes and made an 'o' shape with her lips. "I see."

"I said yes," Ginny answered the question she was sure was coming.

Narcissa's expression fell. "Oh," she said softly. With a deep inhale, she put her hand on Ginny's. "Ginny, I've got to ask, do you love him?"

Ginny bit her bottom lip, trying to find the words to best answer the question.

Narcissa spoke first. "If the answer was yes, you would have said it already."

Ginny closed her eyes, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Laurent is everything I could've dreamed of. He's intelligent, he's thoughtful, he's attractive, he's well-off, and he's affectionate. Any girl would be lucky to marry him."

Narcissa nodded. "Yes, and to every girl the things you listed off would be all that mattered. How someone reads on paper and how they make you feel are two entirely different things, Ginny. You can't base something like marriage on whether someone has more pros than cons."

Ginny dropped her head into her hands. "I know," she mumbled into her palms. "And that makes more sense than anything else my brain has come up with today. But, I just don't see the point of waiting around for love that may never happen."

"Ginny, look at me," Narcissa demanded. Ginny looked up from her hands. "I married Lucius because I had to. The only beneficial thing to have come from that marriage is Draco, and I would never ask that my marriage be undone because of that. But," Narcissa looked towards the windows which were now uncovered. "Had I waited, I would've met Lee, eventually. I believe you know where that story would have ended." There was a sad smile on Narcissa's lips.

Ginny felt a sharp pain in her chest. Narcissa wouldn't be able to see Lee for a while. In fact, if she never got better, she wouldn't be able to see Lee ever again. Who would tell Narcissa's love that she had died? Who could volunteer? "I know," Ginny whispered, eyebrows knit in an exhausting sadness.

Narcissa could be heard trying to even her breathing. She turned back to Ginny and her eyes held a different purpose than before. "Tell me about last night."

Ginny's head snapped up to meet Narcissa's gaze. "Last night?"

Narcissa nodded. "Did you forget about our magical bond? If you are injured, I feel it."

Ginny had forgotten. "I…" She didn't know how to explain to Narcissa what had happened. She couldn't possibly lie, Narcissa had always been able to tell if Ginny was lying. "Draco came to my room upset," Ginny said quietly, "We fought."

Ginny hoped that explanation would be enough. Thankfully, Narcissa nodded, pursing her lips into a thin line. "I see."

Ginny swallowed, her throat stung from being so dry. She couldn't think of anything to say, so waited for Narcissa to give her an indication of what to do.

"Ginny, I need to speak with my son." Ginny's pulse began to race. Would Draco be angry with her? Would he come back and do worse? "But," Narcissa continued, "I must explain something to you. I must beg something of you."

Ginny nodded, leaning in closer to hear better, the volume of Narcissa's voice decreasing the longer she spoke. "I did not have the luxury to marry for love. Maybe if I had I'd be penniless, maybe I'd be dead. But I consider both options in higher regard than the prison I live in now. Please, Ginny, don't throw away the gift you have. You don't understand how precious and valuable it is to be able to marry for love. Please, don't throw that away. Do it because I couldn't, Ginny."

Ginny nodded. "I promise."


	25. Ch24: Tempest

Title: Call Me Ginevra

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** I had no idea it would be so hard to write the first ten paragraphs of this chapter, but so it was. I hope this clarifies things for you.

P.s. don't hate me.

**Author's Note: **I believe last chapter left a few of you stunned and confused. Allow me to explain: Draco reacted the way he did for a number of reasons (some of which you'll find out in this chapter YAY!). First, he just got back from DE training. He's gonna be a little violent. He'd been locked in a prison cell, basically, for six months being subjected to torture (both directly and in the form of torturing others possibly or whatever sick thing they did which I won't explain here), all for a cause he didn't believe in.

Second, as my comrade Mongoose pointed out in her review, he reacted emotionally. He had trusted Ginny enough to expect her to fill him in on something that big. Her not doing so was a massive betrayal in his eyes.

Thirdly, he just found out that the entire time he thought his mum has been fine, she wasn't. The past how many years of his life were a hoax. And he wonders "What about all those moments I _could _have spent with her but didn't, because I didn't know she was ill?"

Also, some of you may have been confused by what Narcissa meant in the last paragraph. Essentially, she is telling Ginny to marry for love because she, Narcissa, could not. She realizes now she would have preferred death etc. over being married to Lucius and what it has meant for her life (or lack thereof). Anyways, she's telling Ginny to not marry Laurent unless she loves him, because she has the opportunity to marry for love and not suffer consequences. I'll see about rewriting that for clarity. But later! Must complete the story first!

_Chapter Twenty-Four: Tempest_

Ginny had made it to her room, barely shutting the door behind her before she collapsed in a pile on the floor. Gasping for air, she clutched her stomach, trying to make more room for her diaphragm. She could finally feel the tears roll down her cheeks as she shook on the floor. How had she come to this place? Why did she say yes to Laurent? Because of her run-in with Draco? Sobbing, she brought her other hand up to her forehead.

Her door was rattling with the force with which she was shaking. Leaning forward, she pressed the heels of her palms into the unforgiving wooden floor, and crawled on her hands and knees to her bed. Sitting up on her knees at first, she gasped lightly for air, and then stood, wobbling. Finally she could grasp the comforter and drag herself onto her bed where she lay like that until she fell asleep.

She opened her eyes again a few hours later when the sun was kissing the horizon. Her hair had settled over her eyes so she could only see the room through a red curtain. Sighing, she rolled over and wove her fingers in the wrinkles of the comforter. The cold clothe brought her some sort of comfort as her body spun with guilt and anxiety. She had to break things off with Laurent, she knew this. But she was scared to. Could you take a step forward in a relationship with someone and then take it back? Would that be rude? Would Laurent still want to be with her?

She felt a stinging in her stomach and audibly hissed. Did she want him to want her back?

She had to be honest with herself, didn't she? Frowning, she clenched her fists. She'd liked Laurent fine. He was good to talk to, a good listener, he comforted her when she needed it, made her laugh, and he was gorgeous. Who wouldn't want to marry him? But that passion she had felt when she was with Draco far trumped that.

She even felt more passion about Blaise when she had been with him, despite the fact that he was a total arsehole. Laurent, it seemed, was much like Dean had been from school. A good friend who could pass the time. Her fists unclenched, and she sighed, closing her eyes.

Narcissa was right. That was no reason to marry someone. But Ginny didn't want to be the one to end things, didn't want to be the bad guy. It was so much easier to be the victim. Maybe if she pulled out of the engagement he would end things with her and she could just be single for a while.

Merlin, she was a terrible person! Feeling nauseous, she curled up into a ball, praying that some part of the magic remaining in these lands would see fit to swallow her up, forever removing her from this complicated realm of existence. How Gryffindoric, plotting on putting herself in a position that would undoubtedly make her the victim of something she was the cause of, the sarcasm in her thoughts almost bitter enough for her to taste. _Of course, _she thought wryly,_ it makes sense for me to think like that, I've been in this house of Slytherins for almost a year now._

Groaning, she turned over in her bed, contemplating the words she knew she would have to say. How would she approach things? How could she possibly start the conversation? She couldn't just sit him down as if they were having tea and drop it in his lap.

_I'm sorry, Laurent, but when I said yes I really meant 'yes, as long as I never have to acknowledge my true lack of feelings for you,' I hope that's okay? _

She mentally shook her head. That wouldn't present a clear break. No, she'd have to be a bit blunter.

_Laurent, we need to talk. I don't love you, and only agreed to marry you because Draco tried to kill me. I know it's terrible, but please be understanding even though I'm dumping you?_

She couldn't expect him to be understanding. That would be asking too much. What if, though, she tried to spin it in his favor?

_Laurent, let's assume that we don't get married. You'd be able to move on and fall in love again. So let's try that, shall we?_

That seemed equally as pitiful as the last two. Some flare for the dramatic, maybe?

_Laurent, I'm a monster. Really. I eat people, and other disgusting things. Run while you still can._

She brought a pillow swiftly against her face. "I have to do this but I can't."

"Can't do what?"

Ah yes, just the person she wanted to see, Laurent.

--

Draco stomped through the corridors of the Manor, shooting death glares at all of the House Elves, and even some of the portraits. Pansy had gone into a snit about a shade of blue or some such rot, and had expected Draco to sit there all day and sympathize for her. What did that cow need, outside of his last name? She couldn't honestly believe he was marrying her for her personality, could she?

He'd only been too happy when a house elf arrived, informing him that his mother wanted to speak with him. Pansy had muttered something under her breath to the tune of Narcissa becoming and invasive mother-in-law, but Draco had silenced her with a glare. So what if she was going to be his future wife, he wouldn't accept any crass statements about his ailing mother.

As he approached his mother's door, his hands suddenly broke into a cold sweat. Their last conversation hadn't ended quite as he'd wanted it to. She'd told him about her condition, told him about Lee (which he really should've seen coming, he admitted, but would've appreciated the tidbit anyways), and told him about Snape.

He was thrilled to hear that his favorite professor, his role model, in fact, had not turned out to be a cold blooded killer. In fact, he was most likely the most dedicated member out of that rotting Order of the Phoenix, and likely got little to no praise for his loyalty. Draco could only hope that one day he would be out from underneath the burdens of his surname, and be able to live up to a cause like Snape had.

He pinched the bridge of his nose, leaning against wall outside his mother's room. After the conversation they had last time, he'd run and practically broken Ginny's skull against her bathroom mirror. He'd felt terribly guilty about it, and suspected that the conversation he was about to enter into had something to do with that incident. Sighing, he wrapped his fingers around the knob to his mother's room, and stepped inside.

--

Ginny sat up on the bed with a tight smile on her face, watching as Laurent shut the door gently behind him, and crossed the room to sit on the bed by her. "What is it Ginevra? Are you all right? You look like something is wrong."

Clever observation, she had to admit. He had been able to pick up on the slight things Ginny did when she was struggling with her thoughts. She wrung her hands, she bit her bottom lip, and she frowned profusely. All of these things he was seeing a version of before him now as Ginny sat frozen on the bed beside him. Could she do this? Even now, even when she was contemplating how to end things with him, he was still being caring and loving.

"Well," She began, swallowing, trying to find more time to think about how to start.

--

Draco closed the door behind him, letting his presence sink in first before moving closer. "Mother, you asked to see me?" He crossed to her bedside and sat in the chair which hadn't been moved in days. He looked at his mother through the dim candlelight in the room. The lines on her face were more prominent, her eyes seemed tired and sunken into her skull, and her cheeks were hollower than they had ever been. Her complexion had gone from pale to ghastly white and her hair, which had been tied back in a French braid, fell out in places. This woman before him was not the same woman he saw when he went off to Death Eater training. This woman was not the woman who had been at the balls all those nights.

Despite all of her run-ins with Lucius, despite all of her medical complications, she had never looked so bad. This was not his mother. This was his mother's body holding on to the last remnants of her spirit before it was dashed like a flame. The thought made him sick.

"Draco," her strained voice began. She reached up, wand in hand, making the flames on the candles dance higher. She turned back to Draco, the dark spots in her eyes more obvious now in the new light. "I suggest you tell me why you saw it fit to physically abuse Ginevra in this house."

--

Ginny had to fist her hands in her comforter to keep from rubbing them raw. She'd spent the past thirty seconds trying to come up with an acceptable preamble, but came up empty. She hadn't rehearsed this, she was prepared. Could she ask him to leave and come back? Could she ask that of him, knowing what she would be practicing for?

No, she wouldn't do that to him. She would lay that on him, have him know that it was because of his kindness that she was better able to break up with him after their short engagement. No, if she was going to do this, she would have to do it in the Gryffindoric ways she was raised to do everything in. Straightforward, honest, and courageously.

But as she watched Laurent smile at her encouragingly, rub her leg affectionately, and tilt his head as if teasing her about her silence, all she could do was try to keep from getting sick all over the place.

"We have to talk," she blurted out without knowing she was going to.

Laurent jumped back a little, dislodging his hand from where it had intertwined with her fingers. He frowned, but in confusion, not sadness. "We are talking, Ginevra," he said simply, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.

_Yes_, she thought, _yes they were._

She ran her hands through her hair, pulling it off of her shoulders and tossing it against her back. She shifted against the pillows to her back, situating herself as if she were settling into a stance. "I-" she began, but found her throat closed up. Her eyes burned furiously with unshed tears. She hadn't even said anything yet and she was about to break into hysterics! Before she could talk herself out of it, she said a little louder than she had planned, "I think we should think again about this whole engagement thing."

--

Draco's jaw twitched and his eyes dropped to the comforter, the pattern of which suddenly became very interesting. "I believe I don't know what-"

"Don't think me a fool Draco Malfoy," his mother snapped, interrupting his deflection. He winced, not liking the tone of her voice. Whenever he had been scolded as a child it had always been by his father's hand, never his mother's. Only once, when he'd run through her garden and torn up all her flowers, had she set her cold eyes on him. She had talked to him like she had never talked to him before, calling him disrespectful and irresponsible. She told him it was a clear indication that he had no value for his mother's possessions and banished him from joining her while she was in the gardens again.

He considered it his worst punishment ever.

He thought she would have continued, but she instead fell silent, watching him, waiting for him to explain. How could he even begin to tell her how he felt? What did she expect him to say to her? That he had felt so betrayed by that infuriating red-head that he'd wanted to squeeze her throat so tight that her head rolled off her shoulders?

He almost shuddered at the mental image those thoughts produced. No, he hadn't wanted to kill her. In truth, he hadn't even wanted to hurt her. But when she'd come out of her shower like nothing was amiss, like everything had been right with the world, he'd exploded. Rather, he'd fallen apart. Every single restraint he'd had, any hopes for controlling the emotions that had been orbiting his thoughts for the past six months had disbanded, leaving him a picture of wreckage.

He'd attacked Ginny, yes, he'd drawn blood from her, for which he would never expect forgiveness. He wouldn't even dare ask for it, not after seeing her once he'd thrown Blaise Zabini out of her room not nine or ten months ago. In truth, he wasn't even aware of what he was doing until she had gasped what he thought was her last breath, and he'd left her there in her bathroom. He'd run out of fear of himself, out of fear of what she would do once she regained her composure. He had been disgusted with his loss of control, and more so, what he had done when he lost it.

"I was…" he trailed off, searching for words. "I don't know. I don't how to begin to explain it. I was so angry with her for everything."

Narcissa quirked one of her eyebrows. "What, pray tell, is everything?"

Draco frowned. Didn't she know?

--

Laurent smiled sadly, running the soft pads of his fingertips over the back of Ginny's hand. She shivered, not because of his tender touch, but because it reminded her somewhat of how Tom Riddle had caressed her thoughts in her first year. It wasn't a soothing touch, which it was meant to appear as, it was menacing.

"I understand you are hesitant about being so young, yes?"

Ginny frowned, refusing to yank her hand away from him. "No, that's not it."

For some reason she couldn't say any more. Laurent stopped his ministrations, looking over at her with a curious expression on his face. "What is it then?"

The way his sentence ended as if it had been sliced off with a blade made Ginny draw back from him a bit. "I-I just…" She swallowed again, her mouth drying up every time she parted her lips. "I just think maybe we moved to fast into it. Like maybe we needed to wait longer."

Laurent sat up straighter, Ginny failed to meet his searching gaze with her eyes. "What would we need to wait on?"

"I just think," she paused, scooting towards the edge of her bed so she could dangle her legs off of it. For some reason, having them crossed made her feel trapped. "I just think that maybe we rushed things. That because Draco and Pansy were getting married, we felt like we had been together long enough or felt strongly enough to do the same." She hoped with leaving the last bit up for interpretation, he would do one of two things. Think she was just making sure she was making the right decision concerning her feelings, or think she didn't have feelings at all and break things off. Either would be better than this conversation.

"I didn't know we had a problem with how strong our feelings were," he bit out a little more roughly than she would have figured Laurent could do.

Ginny clenched her jaw, turning her head slightly to keep Laurent in her peripheral. He was sitting on her bed, staring at his open hands, one leg curled underneath his body. His hair had fallen into his face so she couldn't read his expression. He reminded her a bit of Harry, actually, brooding and a bit temperamental. In an odd way, thinking of Laurent as Harry seemed to give her a jolt of bravery.

"I just don't know if I'm at a point where marrying someone is what I can do," she stated simply.

--

"Well," Draco began, playing with the fringe on his mother's cover. She slapped his hand away softly, and he looked up at her with wide eyes. "I would've thought she'd divulged all of the sordid details." He had snapped at his mother, really, instead of just sounding a bit put off with that last part. He frowned. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to take that tone."

Narcissa shook her head. "Draco, all I know is, ever since you've come back you've been acting oddly. You seem irritated with Ginevra for everything she does, and then you present Parkinson as a wife. Now you've gone into Ginevra's sleeping quarters and injured her? What conclusion am I supposed to draw form all of this? That I've raised an unstable son?"

"Unstable?" Draco scoffed, eyebrows knitting together. "It's not my fault she went and made things awkward."

Narcissa twisted her head to look Draco directly in the eye. "Don't go pawning the blame on her. If anyone made things awkward it was you."

Draco stared incredulously at his mother for a moment, sputtering the beginning of a sentence that fell apart as it attempted to leave his lips. "Me? _Me? _How is any of this my fault?"

"Oh don't play stupid," Narcissa turned away from him, crossing her arms in a flash of indignation he'd never seen in her before. "You know very well what I mean. She's been trying to move on with Laurent, now with all this Pansy business, she's gone and thrown herself at him in a false engagement thinking it's the best thing she's got going in her life. If it weren't for your careless actions none of this would have happened."

"I don't see how my actions have anything to do with her relationship with _Laurent,_" He bit out the last part as if it burned his insides to say the man's name.

Narcissa gaped at him. "I don't believe you. If you hadn't broken things off with Ginny, she'd never have gone to Laurent in the first place."

Draco didn't recall throwing the chair he was sitting in halfway across the room, but when he realized he was standing up and that the chair was across the room, well, that was the only conclusion he could draw. "_I_ did not end things with _her,_" he snarled, fists clenched. "After not receiving owls from her I snuck home one night from training and found her practically wrapped around that sore excuse for a Frenchman."

Narcissa, who had been fit to burst at her son's outburst, snapped her lips shut. Frowning, she began to massage her temples, a headache setting in. "You did what?"

Draco rolled his eyes.

--

The look Laurent sent Ginny immediately erased whatever vision she had of Harry. "What do you mean 'what you can do'?" His voice could have just been shaky, nervous, and emotional. To Ginny it sounded a bit like a snarl.

She jumped from the bed, putting some distance between them. Acting as if she had done it to stop from shaking her legs, she began to pace slowly. "I mean I've been through a lot recently. I've… I've had to deal with things that I never thought I would and… and I don't know if I'm in the right mind to be making a commitment like that," she muttered, casting quick glances at Laurent through her hair which hung around her face like a curtain.

That look she had seen in his eyes before, the one that reminded her of the sharks, flashed behind the dark gleam in his eyes for a split second before disappearing. His expression was neutral, his hands still open in his lap, palms up. "So, what you're saying," Laurent began slowly, as if he was having a hard time controlling himself, "Is that you want to call of our engagement because you don't know if you're stable enough to make a commitment with me."

Ginny let the words hang in the air, wondering if that's what she should agree to. There was something about the way their conversation had settled in the room that made Ginny anxious to run out her door. She hadn't been prepared to meet with these kinds of shielded emotions, especially since she was having trouble pinpointing what they were. Maybe she could wait to break up with him entirely, and just call of the engagement indefinitely.

"A little. Yes." She nodded slowly.

A muscle in Laurent's jaw twitched and he stood, taking a few steps in Ginny's direction. She had to catch herself from taking steps away from him. That wouldn't look right, and he may not respond well to it. "Ginny, there's no reason we can't be engaged. We just won't get married for a bit." He had spoken slowly, his head slightly turned as if he wanted to look at her out of the corners of his eyes.

Ginny felt as if someone had turned out the lights in the room she was standing in, in the sense that she was suddenly disoriented. Something about this whole conversation had turned out horribly wrong, and again, she was having trouble putting her finger on it.

"I understand, and that makes logical sense, but it would be worse for me to maybe break off the engagement later than now." She was attempting to reason with him, be rational, maybe sway him with a bit of a pity party if she got far enough. Truthfully, she just wanted to be out of her room. Something had bundled up between them, like charged electricity, and standing there like she was made her feel extremely vulnerable to a possible shock.

"And why would you break off the engagement later?" Laurent turned his head so he was looking at her fully, and took two long steps to meet her face to face, no more than a foot apart.

With his towering height looming down over her, Ginny felt the ability to control her muscles slipping. Her legs were starting to wobble, her fingers were going numb, and she could've sworn she felt her bottom lip quiver. This wasn't right. Something was wrong.

"Because…"

--

Draco stalked over to the bedroom door, thrusting his palm into the wall with a loud 'BAM', and exhaling like a bull. "Can't believe this," he muttered, spinning around and leaning against the wall. "I go off to training, Ginny pledges her undying love, I stop getting owls from her after I stupidly profess my love for her, I come home one night and she's flirting with her soon-to-be." Draco spat out.

Narcissa watched him closely, waiting for his breathing to return to normal as the pieces of this rather large puzzle started to fall into place. They had been wrong. They had been so wrong about everything.

"Draco," she began slowly, as if he were a maniac with a weapon she was trying to negotiate with, "Ginny received a letter from you explicitly stating that you had no feelings for her, and had found someone else at training. I can vouch for this, I saw the letter. It was in your handwriting."

"Bullshit!" Draco roared, kicking off of the wall with a foot, stampeding to his mother's bedside. "I'll say this once, and only once, I loved that girl with every fiber of my god-forsaken being and sent no such thing!"

Narcissa nodded, covering her forehead with a hand, her headache was beginning to worsen. "Draco, I have the distinct feeling that someone tricked you and Ginny into thinking the one had broken things off with the other." Slowly her fingers drew circles down the side of her pale face.

Draco's eyes were so livid, that Narcissa could barely tell if her words had registered. It wasn't until he walked backwards to the wall, and slid down it, letting his head fall into his hands, that she knew he could see how obvious the whole thing had been. "But who?" He looked up from his open palms, confusion and despair written on his features.

Narcissa's face hardened. "Who else?"

--

"…Laurent, I'm sorry, but I just don't know what I'd feel in another month or so," she mumbled, running a hand wearily down her face. She was all of a sudden exhausted, her heart racing to pump the adrenaline through her system that was giving her the urge to leap for her bedroom door behind her. "I mean, we've only been dating for two months, Laurent, that's not long." She shook her head, tears brimming on the rims of her eyelids.

"Love doesn't have a time requirement, Ginny," Laurent took another step towards her. Ginny matched it by leaning back on the heels of her feet.

Barely unable to control her own lips, she muttered, "I didn't even know if that's what this is."

--

"But why?" Draco couldn't wrap his mind around it.

Narcissa had a sour look on her face. "Because it wasn't part of his plan."

"So he decided to ruin my life? Ship me off to training and do away with what might have turned out to be the one good thing left when I got home?" Draco hollered, his short nails making half moons in his palms.

Narcissa wished she had the strength to stand up and console her son. "I'm so sorry. If I had seen this sooner…" She trailed off. "You're father was never adept in thinking about other people.

Draco stood, subconsciously dusting his pants off for dirt. "Don't ever refer to him as that again. As far as I'm concerned, he stopped being my father a long time ago." He grabbed the doorknob, turning it and cracking open the door. Pausing, he turned back to his mother. "I'm going to find Ginny, sort this out." With that, he turned back and walked into the hallway.

--

A series of things happened at once. Laurent, who had been calmly trying to ration out how to respond to what she'd said, had snapped his head up to gape at her. Ginny, who had been on the brink of tears, had seen this and taken a step back, fear clearly visible on her face. And that's when it hit her, what was wrong about this whole conversation. What was wrong about everything. She hadn't even noticed it, and felt like a damned fool for being so preoccupied that a blaring spot of evidence didn't even catch her attention.

This entire time, Laurent hadn't been speaking with a French accent.

Moreover, he'd called her Ginny.

He'd never called her Ginny.

With this realization dawning on her, and obviously noticeable by the way her expression changed, Laurent had responded the only way he could at that moment.

He extended his arm out, face calm as ever, and brought his knuckles against Ginny's cheekbone, sending her to the ground in a heap of high fashion clothes she did not buy, flailing limbs, and sweaty flesh. Kneeling down as she reached out her arms, pulling at the wooden planks on the floor as if they would suddenly sprout handles she could hold onto, he'd grabbed a fistful of her hair and yanked her back towards him.

The jerking motion he used to bring her back momentarily caused Ginny to see stars, her neck screaming in pain. Feeling dizzy, she didn't realize that Laurent had climbed on top of her, pinning her arms down. With whatever strength she had left, she began twisting and writhing beneath him, trying anything she could to move him from where he was. He struck his fist against her temple, disorienting her and causing her to lose her vision for a moment, and sunk a fist into her ribs.

She didn't realize she had started screaming until he'd covered her mouth with his hand, pressing the side of her face into the cold, hard floor. His palm had fallen across her nose as well, and she tried to gasp for breath, but found she couldn't. He was going to suffocate her.

Her eyes were wide, tears rolling freely down her face as she flailed beneath him. She caught her knee between his legs, dislodging his hand from her mouth, and crawled up from underneath him. She dashed for the door, feeling the weight of her freedom only feet away, when a voice that was colder than any English winter she'd known snarled out "Crucio" from behind her.

She didn't know what happened after that, for the world went dark around her.

--

Draco trudged down the hallway, hand planted firmly over his lips. He felt like such a fool, playing a pawn in another of his father's games. So Lucius had clearly found out and be and Ginny, and disapproved. Instead of simply forbidding Draco to see her, which surely the man was smart enough to know wouldn't have worked, he'd ensured that they would try to avoid each other as much as possible.

There was only one thing Lucius hadn't planned on, for Draco's feelings for Ginny to be more than just an infatuation. He hadn't known it when he'd left that day in December, but after staying up all night in that cell they called a room at 'training,' he'd realized there was a reason the image of her smiling face in his mind would put him at ease.

This meant many things. First, he was going to have to find that blasted brat and explain everything to her. Surely she'd dump that man, _Laurent, _for him. After that, all he had to was get rid of Pansy, bypass his father's fury, escape with her somewhere they'd be safe, and most likely make sure none of her friends or family could be used as a trap against them. Yes, all very simple. But first, he had to find the bloody redhead.

It was odd, feeling the mixture of pain and relief well up inside of him. He hated that he'd gone so long thinking what he had, that she had just cast him aside in favor of a new toy. That he'd actually sunk so low as to lay hands (and nothing else, on Pansy, because he'd been desperate to make her jealous, that he'd gone into her bathroom and thrashed her against her own bathroom mirror…

He cringed. He could never expect an apology for that, and wouldn't try for one. With his luck, she may not even take him back after all the trouble this relationship had, and would cost. He was halfway down the corridor, leading to the center of the house, when a house elf apparated in front of him. The thing shook like a dead leaf in the wind, its bony knees rattling together in a disgusting manner, hands pulling on its long ears. "Master Draco must come… Mistress Malfoy needs you now," it squawked. Draco frowned. He'd just been to see her.

"But I've got to go find Ginny and straighten this mess out, surely it can wait…"

The house elf looked gravely up at him. "Mistress is not well," it shuddered, and apparated away.

Draco didn't need anymore motivation, sprinting back to his mother's room. As he neared it, he could hear the distinctly rasping voice of his mother, moaning in pain. Arriving at her room, he thrust the door open to find her halfway down her bed, twisting and convulsing against the sheets. Through her groans he made out two words that made his heart stop. "Ginny…! Pain…!"


	26. Ch25: Eye of the Storm

**Title:** Call Me Ginevra

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Harry Potter. I don't own any characters except those you can't research on the lexicon and aren't mentioned in the books. The plot is my own. Any resemblances to other plots are pure coincidence. Think about it this way, great minds think alike.

**Full Summary**: The war has the Weasley's worried about poor little Ginny. After checking her resources McGonagall claims she has the best caretaker for Ginny. Too bad it turns out to be Narcissa Malfoy. While at Malfoy Manor Ginny faces growing up, a strict regiment and Draco on a day-to-day basis. Can Ginny and Draco brave the unknowns of friendship? Will the buds of relationship form? What will Harry do when he finds out that only Ginny holds the key to defeating Voldemort?

**Pairings**: Draco/Ginny (I guess this sort of answers the "buds of relationship" question in the summary, huh?)

**Rating**: Eventually M, but pace yourself. (I will give fare warning of the chapters which that rating applies.)

**Chapter Note:** There will be graphic smut. Lots. Enough that I may get in twouble. Enjoy.

**Author's Note: ***Cough cough*. So uh… Ha… life, huh? It's a funny thing. Well, lots happened. Break up, family drama, job, baaaad time with school, new boyfriend, LOTS of fresh drama, and now… the dust has mostly settled. I wish I could deliver you something more lengthy but I really intended on stopping it exactly where it is. I do plan on finishing this! I forbade myself from writing another story until I do and I'll follow through on it I swear!

Also, I will most humbly accept any flames for my flaking.

Without further adieu…

_Chapter Sixteen: Eye of the Storm_

"_Ginny, really," Molly clicked her tongue in disapproval. Shaking her head, her fiery red curls flying about her flushed cheeks, she went back to her cooking. "I expect you to remember the proper behavior for a young lady."_

_Ginny stared at her mother, jaw slack. "Mum! I like to fly! And Fred and George are really good at it and…" She was cut off by the look her mother shot her. _

"_This is not open for debate, Ginny. You'll not fly again."_

The fog cleared. Clear. Clear. Her mind was clear. Move. No. Pain. Must move.

PAIN!

_Ginny couldn't breathe. The book fell from her hands, the tattered black edges making scratchy noises on the stone floor. Her chest felt as if it were about to contract, crushing her lungs. Her body began to burn. "No-"_

_From the pages fluttering in the breeze she heard his voice, "Yes."_

Air. Breathe. Must breathe. Burning. Chest burning. Move. Can't. Must. Can't. Pain.

Harry. Ron. Hermione. Mum. Dad. Fred. George. Bill. Charlie. Percy. Somebody. Draco. Draco. Draco. Help.

_Ginny sighed. The leaves moved in the wind, allowing the sun to shine into her eyes. Frowning, she clamped her eyes shut. How long had she been wasting herself on Harry bleeding Potter? How long had she wanted what all those foolish romance novels had told her she could have? Realizing that her love for Harry Potter was about as real as the possibility of everyone being an opposite gender, her world immediately refocused into something new. The shackles had been thrown off-_

Dammit, Ginny, MOVE!

----------

Draco found her in the library.

He had run around the mansion for Merlin knows how long. His feet were pounding, his back was burning, his chest was struggling to catch a breath. He should have known to look here first. He should have known this is where she would be…

He had gone to her bedroom first. Seen the carnage of what had happened.

Seeing that, he had made a very difficult decision to continue searching for Ginny as opposed to hunting down and murdering Laurent in the worst of ways. Swallowing, gasping for air, he stood up, palm against the doorway. It was then that he saw her. He had to wait for a moment so his heart would stop racing, but instead it just did it for an entirely different reason. He knew this was the worst time, (and in the future he would blame his body for being all too masculine for its own good), but it couldn't be helped. She was standing by the window, arms wrapped around her waist, forehead pressed against the glass. He couldn't see her expression in the glass, for he was too far away, but the way her shoulders slumped, the way she looked like the wall was the only thing keeping her upright, nearly killed him. But it was also the way her body curved, the way the moonlight illuminated the softness of her hair that made his body thrum.

The thought that maybe they could walk out of this where they had left off before his training was making his body tense up in a very good way, calming the bloodlust he had been flooded with earlier. "Ginny," He said slowly.

His heart clenched in his chest as she jumped, almost turned to look at him, then jerked her head back as if she'd been burnt. She cleared her throat. "Draco." He could hear that her voice was thick from crying and he knew, without a doubt, regardless of the length of time in Azkaban he may get, regardless of the death Voldemort may bestow upon him, he was going to kill him in the most graphic and disturbing of ways.

Draco stepped closer to her, and saw her inch into the corner the window and the wall made. Frowning, he stopped. "Ginny don't do this…" He trailed off, running his hand through his hair. "Listen, I just got back from-"

"Stop it!" She shouted, holding herself tighter. "Just stop it! Go away! Leave me alone! I don't want to hear anything you have to say!" She gasped for air, her knees wobbling. "My god Draco, just leave me alone," Her voice fell to a whisper. She shuddered, her hair falling into her face. Irritated by it, she tossed her head back. The moonlight caught her cheek, and the large purple bruise on her skin was illuminated.

Draco never would remember the steps he took towards her, how he took her arms in his hands and turned her to face him. "What did he do to you?" The words may have formed a question but his voice was so close to a growl, it made Ginny pull away from him. He saw then, the extent of what Laurent had done to her. First, the only thing keeping her from falling to the ground were his hands. Her face was a swollen patchwork of cuts and bruises. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying.

Something in the way that he was looking at her, the way that he was so absolutely frightened by what had happened to her, enraged her.

She pushed away from him, landing on the ground on her knees. "Don't you dare look at me like that! Don't you dare look at me like you care! You made it perfectly clear you didn't!" She hugged herself, pulling in every raw emotion before it spilled out of her.

Draco fell to his knees in front of her, grabbing her to him like she was a scared child. Ginny fought against him as best she could, pushing her palms into his chest but getting no where. "Ginny, stop it and listen to me!" Draco grabbed her wrists, pinning them to his chest. "I just spoke with my mother. She told me this whole thing is one of my father's elaborate plans to break us up."

At this, Ginny stopped moving entirely. "What?"

Draco sighed, loosening his grip on her wrists. "I went to training, in December." Ginny nodded when Draco paused. "We were writing each other, and then all of a sudden your letters stopped." Ginny opened her mouth to protest but Draco cut in before she could. "My father had been stopping them." He took a deep breath. "He forged the owl you got, the one telling you I wanted to break up. He stopped your owls from coming to me. I finally broke down and apparated her to see you myself when I saw you and…" His face grew hot with anger. "I don't even know what you thought you were doing with the likes of him," He bit out, sneering.

Ginny frowned bitterly. "I thought he was a nice man at the time, all right?"

Draco gaped at her. "That? That is a strategically shaved chimpanzee! Not a man! Look at what he did to you…" He trailed off, lightly touching a place on her cheek that wasn't off-color.

He felt the hot wetness of her tears slide beneath his fingertip, and his eyes were drawn up to the glistening brown in hers. "How can you look at me like that when you're engaged?" She barely whispered.

Draco's lips quirked. "I promise you Ginny, had I known the truth of the situation, I wouldn't have even looked in Pansy's direction."

Ginny almost sneered. "Is that supposed to make everything better then? You get with Pansy then all of a sudden it's 'my daddy made us hate each other let's get back together'?"

Draco started back as if he'd been struck. "Ginny I didn't mean it like that. I just thought since we'd been played like chess pieces we could at least try to right the situation."

Ginny glared up at him, tears falling over her cheeks. "And how do we do that, Draco, hmm?" Her voice was shaking. "How do we _right the situation?_" She shook her head, tugging her hands away from him and trying to stand. "Just leave me alone. You've got Pansy now."

Draco's temper flared inside him, and he caught Ginny's hand before she could hobble off. Standing to full height, he pulled her against his body, one hand around her wrist, his other arm firmly around her waist. "You think I'd rather be with Pansy than just be alone? I came home from training and saw you cuddled up with that French bastard. What was I supposed to do? Pine over you? I'd spent too much damn time doing that when I thought you were just ignoring me. And for your information, now that I know the truth, the engagement is off."

Ginny widened her eyes, staring up at Draco. "Why?"

Draco stared down at her. "Is that a real question?"

Ginny swallowed, but it stung, her throat sore. "Why? Why break off the engagement? What's changed?"

Draco groaned. "Ginny, haven't you heard anything? I don't even remotely like Pansy. I love you."

It was the finality of the way he said those last words that made Ginny's heart nearly skip a beat. "If you didn't like her, how could you have been with her?"

Draco frowned. "What do you mean?"

She looked away, eyes on the floor. "I mean, weren't you physical with her?"

Draco sneered. "Absolutely not."

"How do you know?"

Draco cocked his head. "Because I'd not been drugged. What kind of question is that? I'd have known if we were physical."

Ginny smiled despite herself, peering up at Draco through her eyelashes in a way that made his throat constrict. "I mean how do you know you love me?"

Draco couldn't fight back his smile either, and dropped her wrist, opting to run his knuckles softly against her jaw. "Because you have a disgusting ability to occupy my every thought. Because every time I saw you since I'd been back, I couldn't help but know I still wanted you, even after being tricked into a false situation. Because at night I'd wake up to the whisper of your voice against my ear, and it wasn't until I was fully awake, and knew it wasn't happening that I'd hurt again." He took her hand, laying her palm against his chest over his heart. "Do you feel that Ginny?" She nodded. "That's for you. Everything in this body, everything I am and will ever be is for you. I know that now, if there was ever a question in my mind."

"Oh, Draco…" Ginny trailed off, throwing her arms around his neck and holding him close. She hissed, pulling back and cradling her cheek in her hand. "Bloody hell," She muttered.

Draco clenched his jaw. "Let me heal these…" He trailed off, digging in his pants for his wand. He pulled it out and immediately set away on healing her cuts and bruises. At first he was at a loss of where to start, what with her body covered with an assortment of injuries. He decided, then, on the biggest, then to work from the top down. Finding it difficult to see clearly in the light, Ginny found herself having to almost lay down as Draco scoured her body for injuries. Once he was nearly done, he had her stand. "See if you can walk around a bit."

Ginny nodded, and hesitantly started taking steps. Crying out, a bolt of pain shooting up from her left knee, she grabbed on to the edge of a table to keep herself partly upright. "I don't think you got them all," She muttered through clenched teeth.

Draco was at her side, sitting her on the table. Slowly, he dragged the tip of his wand down her pant leg, the denim ripped apart as if by a sharp knife. From the middle of her thigh down, there was a slit so he could properly look at her leg. Kneeling in front of her, he braced her thigh on either side with his hands, turning it slightly to get a better look at her thigh and knee under the moonlight. "There's a bruise on your knee, it's pretty swollen."

Ginny nodded, watching him work, it was mesmerizing. "I slammed my knee into the floor trying to run away. I was too sore to." She looked away.

Draco touched his wand to her knee, and within seconds she felt the sensation of cold water on her joint. Sighing as the pain started to dissipate, she closed her eyes. The small circles his wand was making reminded her of the gentle way he used to caress her back, or how he'd run his fingers through her hair. The memory made her shiver. The feeling of his hands sliding up her thigh made her shiver, though, too.

Her eyes opened and she looked down at Draco. He was still on his knees, hands holding onto her thigh, but his attention was on her face. Something in his eyes, the way he was looking at her, the way the moonlight through the windows made his hair shine like the moon was inside of him, not in the sky, made goose bumps rise on her flesh.

"Ginny," He breathed, the air leaving his mouth in a puff, crawling across her leg. She shivered. Slowly he lowered his lips to her knee, leaving a circle of kisses around the former location of her bruise. He stopped, eyeing her from where he was. The look in his eyes made her gasp. The mixture of heat and desire, hunger and lust, he was looking at her like she was a filet and he'd been starving for a year.

Her throat tightened a bit, her body growing warm. Time froze, it seemed. She could see him perfectly for a moment, the angle of his jaw, the bow in his lip, the lines of green in his eyes, the way his neck tensed from the strain of looking up at her. She felt her eyes widen in want. He stood, closing the distance between them until his lips met hers. It was light at first, almost as if instead of kissing, he was merely resting his lips on hers. Then his lips began to move, his tongue darted out and massaged hers. Her hands found their way to his blonde hair, winding through the strands as if to permanently fix herself to him.

One of his hands held her hair in a fistful, the other was dragging her closer to him by the small of her back. It was all wet lips, dashing tongues, and teeth for a bit, their bodies warming against one another. Finally, Draco broke their kiss, his lips falling to her neck, dragging his lips and teeth across her skin. Beneath him, Ginny shuddered, moaning lightly from the back of her throat. Grasping her hip roughly, he pulled her flush against him so she could feel just how his body had reacted to her.

She could feel him, long and hard pressing into her stomach. The thought of her being the one responsible for that made heat pool between her legs. Biting her bottom lip, she dug down, grabbing his belt and ridding him of it. His expression showed nothing but need, raw unabashed desperation as he pulled her jumper off of her, ripped her jeans so he merely had to pull them down one leg instead of both. His shirt fell to the floor with her clothes. He kicked off his shoes, letting her shove the waistband of his trousers down his hips and thighs. He shivered.

Her hot kisses found his collar bone, his shoulder, the crook of his neck. Her mouth explored the expanse of skin she could reach, her hands the rest. Once she was sure she had properly memorized his chest, every last corded muscle and newly acquired scars, her hand disappeared into his boxers where it wrapped firmly around him. Draco let out all of his breath, nearly falling on top of her, forehead pressing into her shoulder. "God Ginny, don't do that or I won't last long."

His words made her blush, but also made her bolder. Pushing him back a little, she stood from the table, her knee giving her little trouble. Slowly, she went to the floor, kneeling in front of him. His eyes were wide, his lips parted, his shuddering breaths ushered her on. She pushed his boxers to the floor, pressed her palms into his legs as she moved her hands up from his ankles. Lightly, she pressed her fingertips into his hips, testing him. He closed his eyes, hands grasping the table top behind her. Slowly she leaned in and licked him from base to tip.

His legs shook but he stayed standing. He swallowed then exhaled. He'd been holding his breath. Ginny repeated this a second time, earning her a breathless moan. Smiling slightly, she let her tongue cover the tip of him as she slid her lips around him. "Ginny!" He gasped, trying desperately to control his breathing. He couldn't fool her though. His skin was taught and warm. She knew, without a doubt, it had been a while since he'd been with someone. She didn't need to ask, he had been telling the truth. In fact, he probably hadn't been with anyone since her. Feeling her insides come alive, she took all of him inside her mouth, feeling him press against her throat. He cried out, but still didn't meet release. Pulling back, dragging her tongue and lips, she made him writhe.

Once she was properly removed from that part of his anatomy, Draco wasted no time getting her back on the table. Her bra was of minimal trouble, her panties even less. He didn't bother trying to remove them, instead merely snapping them with an abrupt pull. For a moment Draco stared down at the space between them, a multitude of emotions crossing his face. She could tell he was wondering whether to give in to his desperate want and just bury himself in her, or to move slow and make it romantic. "Draco, we'll have time for romance later."

Draco's eyes moved up to hers. For a moment Ginny thought he'd simply disappear inside of her, but she was wrong. "Ginny," his voice was rough. "I haven't done this in so long. Been with you in too long. I'm doing this right." Ginny's breath left her in a gasp as his lips captured a pointed pink nipple. Without pretense, his fingers invaded her. A cry left Ginny's lips as her hips bucked up against his palm, her hands grabbing for his shoulders, hair, neck, anything.

His hand was warm, and still remembered what to do to make her lose her mind. She was so drunk on his touch she didn't notice how his mouth had moved down until his tongue darted out against her. "Oh god Draco, please," She moaned.

Her hands gripped the edge of the desk behind her, her eyes slammed shut, her body began to tingle. It was as if every part of her that had died while he was gone had suddenly revived. Every cell in her body was thrumming with an eager vibration to climax. To make him climax. To be one with him again. Just as she was about to slip over the edge, Draco pulled his hand away and buried himself to the hilt. It was all Ginny needed to see stars. He waited until she nodded, until she had basic control over her body before rocking back and forth.

The rhythm their bodies made caused the desk to creak against the floor of the library. In the silence of the library their hurried breathing, slapping flesh, and the movement of the desk echoed off the stone walls. For what seemed like eternity their orgasms were just building as if they'd never come until finally, as if choreographed, they both fell against each other in waves of pleasure.

With Draco's mouth against her ear releasing hot gasps of air, her skin was quickly covered in goose bumps. Shivering in the now suddenly cool air of the library, she nestled herself against Draco's warm chest. Tears stung her eyes. "I don't understand how I can love you so much," She murmured.

A charming laugh escaped Draco, his chest rumbling. "If you think loving me is confusing you should feel loving you. It's the most occupying emotion I've ever had."

A smile pulled at Ginny's lips and she trailed kisses along his collarbone. "Let's run away from here. Let's just leave this place."

Draco stilled above her. Pulling himself up, he inspected her expression for a moment. "Would you? Would you run away with me?"

Reaching up, Ginny brushed a few strands of hair out of his face. "I'd follow you anywhere."

--------

It took two hours for them to finally split up. Ginny rushed directly to her room in order to pack. She had no idea what to pack, though, and spent a good deal of time simply throwing things onto her bed and attempting to figure out what to take. She worried constantly that somehow the clothes could be tracked, that Lucius had gone to such great lengths to ruin her life that he'd have her followed through a spell on a tag or whatnot.

Instead of donning any of her new wardrobe, she grabbed the few things she had from home. She slipped on her bright red jumper, her worn and dirtied pair of jeans. With her trainers tied, she stood from her bed, turning to examine her room. It was chaos. The house elves had not cleaned the mess from earlier that day. Chairs were toppled in the small sitting room, her bed covers were strewn about the floor, glass was scattered along the floor against the wall from when she tossed a vase. Shuddering, she hefted up the suitcase from her bed.

With a vigor she began tossing things haphazardly into it, sleeves and cuffs hanging out at odd angles. Once she'd managed to fit everything in she could she began stuffing every loose end into the trunk, shoving it down as best she could. She had just clasped it when she heard a voice clear behind her. "An early vacation?" Lucius Malfoy asked, eyebrow raised.


	27. UPDATE

UPDATE:

I really must apologize: I realize it's been four years since I've updated, and that's really inexcusable. I am truly sorry to all of you who have enjoyed reading this fic.

First, I'll get it out of the way – YES, I am planning on finishing this fic! I will not quit it.

Second, a small explanation: Shortly before my last update I starting going through some personal hardships that seemed to culminate in fall '09. Since then, I've been battling with depression, anxiety and some pretty severe writer's block.

However, in my the time since my last update, I've been a part of some creative writing workshops that I feel have strengthened me as a writer. With that in mind, I am eager to get back to writing. But – and I do want to emphasize this – it's been a long ass time since I've written, and the process has become very different for me.

I wouldn't expect an update in the very near future (I actually have to reread this fic and get back into the groove), but I'd like to post some chapters before the end of the year.

Until then, here's more thanks to all of you than I can express.


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